A Demon's Heart
by Texascowgirl-13
Summary: As Sesshomaru faced the oncoming army of the north his mind flew back to his pregnant mate laying in the mansion behind him who was very likely birthing their pup at that moment. Resolved he turned to the enemy with a snarl. "No one is going to hurt her!"
1. The Battlefield

**a/n: This is my first story and hopefully not my last. I plan on making it a multi-chapter story based on the reviews I get. I am open to constructive criticism and flaming(to an extent) as well as postitive feedback. Hope you enjoy.**

**"Speach"**

**'_Thoughts_'**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. Sesshy and Sango would be together for indefinately if I did. ;(**

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****Chapter 1**

A mighty storm was brewing to the north. The black clouds and lightning covering the horizon, coupled with strong winds and deafening thunderclaps promising a stormy night. To the west a small mansion was seen, backed by a full moon that shone out in the darkness and provided light for all those without demonic sight.

Sesshomaru stood alone facing the small army that had invaded his lands and was currently marching towards his home. His pregnant mate lay inside their mansion a short distance away; very likely birthing their pup at that very moment. She had been going into labor when news had come of the approaching enemy and he begrudgingly left her with the midwife.

He had worried about his mate and pup since he'd first left the mansion, fearing that something would happen in his absence. His worry for his mate increasing as the size of the army before him came into view. Were they to somehow get past him they wouldn't hesitate to slaughter his mate and unborn pup.

Growling at the thought, Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at the advancing army. His golden orbs flew to the leader, the lord of the northern lands, a fox demon who sought the fertile lands and prosperous trade of the west.

From his position, safely behind numerous well-armored guards, the fox sneered at Sesshomaru.

"Well, well Sesshomaru. No one to stand beside you I see. Not even that pathetic human mate of yours?"

"Speak of my mate that way again and you will no longer have vocal chords from which to spout your pathetic attempts of intimidation." Sesshomaru ground out, claws digging into his palms as he tried to restrain himself from recklessly attacking in rage.

"You think yourself so high and mighty, _Lord_ Sesshomaru, but you are just as pathetic as your father. Taking a pitiful human wench as your wife, and a demon slayer no less. I have come because you are no longer fit to rule over the western lands. If you hand them over willingly I will allow you, your bitch, and your pathetic half-breed pup to leave with your lives." The fox lord grinned as Sesshomaru's eyes flashed red before turning back to their normal gold. '_I shall fool him into unleashing his anger and attacking blindly, and when he does I shall take from him that which is rightfully mine._'

Sesshomaru knew exactly what the fox was trying to do. He knew and yet the rage he felt at the bastad's words pushed him to action. The demon inside him thrashing and roaring that he defend the honor of his mate and unborn pup.

"I planned to resolve this matter peacefully but it seems that you wish to die so very badly and I hate to deny the wishes of guests to my land." He said calmly, though the anger could still be seen in his golden eyes. Without another word the dog demon through himself into the mass of the northern army. Drawing tokijin from his side, he sent a monstrous dragon strike directly towards the fox lord.

"Lord Takomi! Watch out!" yelled one of the many soldiers who threw themselves into the path of their lord. The dragon strike fell short of its destination as numerous bodies that had jumped into its path absorbed the impact.

"It seems your soldiers are very loyal to you Takomi. A pity seeing as you won't survive the night." Sesshomaru said as he suddenly appeared behind the fox. A load clang was heard as steel met steel and the two demon lords crossed blades.

By now the storm was raging and the winds were whipping Sesshomaru's hair wildly in all directions; adding to the ferocity and surrealism of his blindingly fast attacks. Lord Takomi was barely able to keep track of Sesshomaru's movements and was unable to match his demonic speeds despite his own demonic heritage. His remaining soldiers were either too wounded or too dumbfounded by the power of the dog demon lord to take action.

The storm itself seemed to be holding back its full fury as the rain only fell in light drops that the wind blew diagonally into the faces of all on the battlefield. The skies, however, promised that this would not be the full extent of their wrath. What rain that did fall washed over the freshly spilt blood that covered the earth. The ground lay littered with the blood soaked bodies of the dead, and only a hundred soldiers and the two demon lords themselves remained standing.

'_What's taking Takusi so long?! If he doesn't hurry up and kill the wench then I'm going to end up being killed by Sesshomaru._' Takomi thought frantically as he fell back and ordered his faithful soldiers to attack Sesshomaru.

"The first to bring me his head shall be greatly rewarded!" Takomi yelled in hope that it would provide greater inspiration to his men.

As the remaining one hundred threw themselves towards Sesshomaru he calmly slashed each one with tokijin as they advanced. The screams of the dying filling the air and blocking out the sound of the rolling thunder. Quickly the hundred were dwindling, the few that remained were weary and fearful of advancing upon Sesshomaru who was showing no signs of fatigue or injury.

Suddenly, over the sound of the fierce wind, rain, and the dying screams of the enemy Sesshomaru heard a distant scream. The scream was so load and frantic that even from the few miles between the mansion and the battlefield he could hear the fear in her voice.

"**SESSHOMARU!"**

His eyes widened at his mate's distinct scream and were filled with fear before they narrowed in anger. Without thinking of the enemy before him, he immediately turned back towards his home where the scream had originated and ran.

_'It was a trap. Damn_ _it!'_ Sesshomaru thought as his mate's scream swirled in his mind, accompanied by crippling fear.

The army had been a distraction from the beginning. Remove him from the mansion and take him far enough away that he could not smell the intruders while holding him off long enough for someone to slay his mate. He should have noticed that Lord Takomi's son was missing and had not been at the battle from the beginning.

"Oh no Sesshomaru, I don't think so." Takomi said with a smirk as he and his men stood between Sesshomaru and his home.

Sesshomaru didn't even pause in his stride but slashed tokijin in front of him in a straight horizontal line across his chest,aiming for the remainder of the northern was quickly followed by a diagonal slash he directed specifically toward Takomi.

'SHIT!' was the last thing Takomi thought before the pure blue blast of the double dragon strike enveloped he and his men.

Continuing onwards through the smoke caused by his own attack Sesshomaru sped towards his home at speeds he had never before reached. The new speed would have normally been intriguing had the reason for its presence not been so dire. The smell of his mate's blood was getting stronger, not only as he approached the house but also as Takomi's son attacked and injured her more. His eyes turning fully red as his demon nearly burst loose from its cage, therefore causing him to loose his reasoning. Only the thought of what might happen to his may were he to release it, kept the beast at bay.

"**SANGO!!!**" he roared as he mounted the steps to their home to see nothing but the blood that covered the walls.


	2. The Birthing Room

**a/n: I'm so excited! I got 3 reviews for chapter one already! Thank you so much reviewers! I really appreciate your supporting my story and don't worry I don't plan on leaving it at just two chapters :D!!! This chapter is what Sango was doing while Sesshomaru was battling Takomi. Also, Kagome and Inuyasha are coming into the story really soon. Enjoy!!!**

**"Speach"**

**_'Thoughts'_**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. ;(**

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Chapter 2- The Birthing Room

(One hour earlier)

"AAAAAHHHHHH!!!"

"Breathe Lady Sango. Breathe." Coaxed the old midwife who was trying to help Sango birth her first baby.

"I AM breathing! This hurts worse than any injury I've EVER gotten in battle!" Sango screamed; her fists bunching the sheets as her grip tightened with each contraction.

The old midwife sighed at her Lady's comparison. Most women cried that it was worse pain than the breaking of their hymen when they lost their virginity. Leave it to Lord Sesshomaru's mate to compare childbirth to battle. Her thoughts were interrupted when another contraction hit Sango and she let out yet another scream of pain.

She was about to tell Sango to start pushing when one of the mansion guards entered through the main door and stood on the other side of the screen that separated the birthing area from the rest of the room.

"Mrs. Somio, Lord Sesshomaru has just met with the enemy on the battlefield. Also, news from Lord Inuyasha has come. He is on his way here as quickly as he can come, however, the storm may impair his travel." The guard said from his position respectively behind the curtain.

"Very well. Thank you. You may return to your post." Somio said.

She watched him leave before turning back to Sango who was sweating up a storm in the withdrawals between contractions. Carefully, Somio leaned over Sango and dabbed her forehead with a wet cloth to soak up the sweat that seemed to be pouring off of Sango in waves.

"Do you hear that Lady Sango? Your mate is currently doing battle with the enemy. You wouldn't want him to come back and find that his mate has yet to bear his pup would you?" Somio asked gently.

Sango simply shook her head as a look of determination came into her eyes at hearing the news of her mate.

"What do I need to do Somio?" she asked coarsely, her voice raw from screaming.

"Whenever you feel your next contraction coming I need you to push as hard as you can for as long as you can." Somio said. Years of practice as well as having six children of her own made Somio the most suited person for the job considering that she'd have to birth the pup without assistance from other midwifes.

"I CAN FEEL IT COMING!" Sango yelled as she once again clutched the beddings.

"Push Lady Sango! I need you to push. The baby's almost here." Somio said as she readied herself in front of Sango.

After a few more screams and pushes from Sango the baby was beginning to crown. "Here comes the head. One more big push Lady Sango!"

"AAEEEEIIIIIIIIII!!!!!"

Suddenly the tiny screams of an infant filled the room. Sango's body fell into post pardom exhaustion as she held out her arms for her newborn pup. After being cleaned by Somio, the baby was placed safely into the arms of his weary mother.

"Congratulations Lady Sango. It's a boy." Somio said with a smile.

"My beautiful baby boy." Sango cooed as she rocked the infant gently in her arms.

He had his father's beautiful silver hair and blazing golden eyes. Each time he cried Sango could see the small fangs that were forming in his mouth, and she could feel his tiny claws that clasped tightly to her finger as she placed it in his plump little hand. She felt her heart expand with each cry that rang forth from his little body.

"What are you going to name him?" Somio asked as she finished cleaning up and returned to Sango's side. .

"Sesshomaru and I were thinking about Kohaku for a boy, in honor of my brother." Sango said in a soft voice as she stared at her tiny pup.

"I think Kohaku is a lovely name, Lady Sango. It suits him well." Somio said gently.

Sango looked up from her baby for the first time since he'd been lain in her arms to give Somio a sweet smile. "Thank you Somio. I couldn't have done it without you."

Somio was about to reply when the guard from earlier burst through the door. Both Sango and Somio turned towards the guard who was breathing frantically with blood running down his face. Sango shifted Kohaku into her left arm and reached for her katana, one that Sesshomaru had laid by her bed for protection before he left, with her right hand.

"Lady Sango, Mrs. Somio! Someone is attacking the mansion. We need to move you now!" The guard yelled desperately. Suddenly a slash came from the darkness behind him and he cried out in pain before falling to the floor with a sickening thump.

Somio screamed but positioned herself between Sango and the unseen attacker. Sango clutched Kohaku to her chest as she pushed herself to her feet with help from her katana.

"Well, well, well. I thought that the _great Lord Sesshomaru_ would have had more adequate guards to protect his mansion. _Especially_ when his pathetic human mate is laid up birthing his disgusting half-breed pup." Sneered the fox demon as he stepped out of the darkness.

"Takusi!" Sango hissed, "What are you doing here? How dare you attack my home!"

She had seen the demon before at meetings that all the demon lords attended but had never spoke to him, nor been closely associated with his father since he desired her mate's land.

"Such a load mouth for such a lowly creature." Takusi said with a dark look.

Sango's mind was running a mile a minute. She was enraged that this bastard fox demon invaded her home and slew her friends; she never saw herself as a Lady and had made friends with every one of the household servants. However, she knew with her current exhaustion from recently giving birth, as well as holding her infant son in her arms, she was in no condition to fight the fox demon.

"You leave Lady Sango alone demon! You have no right to be here. Leave before Lord Sesshomaru returns and slays you for insulting his mate and pup!" Somio said angrily, despite the fear that shook her voice slightly.

"Shut your trap old hag!" Takusi growled, "Disgusting human trash have no right to speak to beings that are better than them."

With those words Takusi entered the room and advanced on the two women menacingly. Sango and Somio both backed away with Somio still positioned in front of Sango. The fox demon's sickening smirk put fear into the very depths of Sango's soul and caused her to hold Kohaku closer to her chest. It was against everything Sango stood for to let Somio stand in front of her but she had her baby to think of, she'd just have to swallow her pride. The infant began to cry as he felt the threatening aura that was permeating the room.

"So the little brat can already sense killing intent only minutes out of the womb. Impressive. To bad that he won't live to use that talent." He smirked as he pulled his clawed hand in front of his face and licked his claws threateningly. With blinding speed Takusi flew forward and slashed his claws into Somio's trembling form.

"Somio!" Sango screamed as she leapt back to avoid Takusi's second slash.

Takusi smirked but continued with his attacks. Sango was desperately blocking with her katana while trying to hold little Kohaku as far away from the attacks as she could with her left arm. However, her exhausted body drained what little strength she had remaining as Takusi increased the speed of his attacks.

She knew that she had to get away from him and find Sesshomaru or her body was going to fail her soon. Making an split-second decision she allowed Takusi to get a hit on her right shoulder but as soon as he did she slashed at his face with her katana, temporarily blinding him and allowing her to make a mad dash for the door.

"**SESSHOMARU!" **she cried desperately at the top of her lungs as she fled from the room.

Sango pushed her weary body to its limit as she tried to put as much ground between her and Takusi as she could before he recovered from her desperate attack. Her wounded shoulder spilling her precious life giving liquid onto the wooden floor of the hall as she made her way towards the front entrance. She had already lost enough blood during the birthing, and the injury to her right shoulder was spilling blood that she could not afford to loose.

Kohaku began to cry loader as Takusi's demonic aura suddenly appeared behind his fleeing mother.

"BITCH!" Takusi roared as he brought his claws down onto Sango's back. Blood flew and painted the walls of the hallways.

Sango screamed in pain but threw herself to the side to avoid the attack that would surely have taken her head off. Her horizontal momentum sent her sprawling through the sliding door of the room closest to the main entrance. Wood splintered and littered the floor as Sango shifted her weight to ensure that she fell on her back and not onto her left side where little Kohaku was crying.

Her blood was already beginning to pool on the floor when Takusi walked into the room. Sango pushed herself backwards as she stumbled to her feet, hunching her body over her tiny baby. Suddenly, she could smell the smoke as she realised Takusi had lit the mansion on fire while she had been fleeing.

'_The bastard lit the mansion afire! I have to get Kohaku out somehow, even if it costs me my own life!' _Sango thought desperately as her breathing became more labored. Kohaku's cries becoming loader as he felt his mother's distress.

"Now you die." Takusi growled as he drew his sword.

He immediately began slashing at the mother and child using his demonic speed. He was well aware of how acute Sesshomaru's hearing was and it was highly likely that he was on his way to the mansion at that moment. He could tell that Sango's movements were slowing with her fatigue and blood loss and he decided to take full advantage of it. As soon as he saw an opening he slashed his sword across her chest thinking that he could kill Sesshomaru's pup and mate at the same time. In his haste he didn't see Sango move the baby out of the way of the sword just before it struck her.

He smirked as she fell to the floor in a bloody heap and the pup's cries ceased. Sheathing his sword and walking away from the bloody scene he laughed while whipping away some of the blood on his face caused by Sango's katana. As he exited the burning mansion he suddenly picked up the scent of Sesshomaru approaching and hastily fled.

Seconds later Sesshomaru flew into the courtyard leading to the entrance with a fearful yell.

"**SANGO!!!" **he roared as he mounted the steps of their home to see nothing but the blood that covered the walls.

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**a/n:** **Dun, dun,dun! Cliffie!!! Again... but don't worry, I'll try to write the next chapter as soon as I get this posted and it may be up tonight. I'll try my best! This one was much longer than chappie one but I hope it's ok. :D I did find a few typo's when I went back and read chapter one for the 4th or 5th time(when it was already published) and I couldn't believe I missed those. Sorry for the mistakes, I'll try not to make many more but I am only human. **

**PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE Review!!! **** Yours truly, Texascowgirl-13**


	3. The Blood and Blame

**a/n: I'd like to thank Hattaru, Lerryn, and the other reviewers who have reviewed both of my chapters and have supported my first story. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!! Neways, here's the next chappie! **

**"Speach"**

**_'Thoughts'_**

**Disclaimer: No own INU! Wish I did, but i don't... **

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Chapter 3- The Blood and Blame

Fear struck Sesshomaru like an arrow to the heart. He could smell the blood; his mate's, all of it. For a moment he was paralyzed with fear before he shook himself out of his trance-like state and quickly entered the mansion.

The fire was already licking greedily at the wood of the farthest rooms and he knew that he'd have to hurry and find Sango and the baby before the fire consumed them as well.

Tenseiga began pulsing at his side as he came upon the first room closest to the door. The blood covering the walls was the thickest here and his mate's scent was the strongest inside the room. He knew he'd found her.

What he didn't know was _how_ he would find her. All his darkest fears were becoming reality as he entered the room to find his mate surrounded by a large pool of her own blood and his newborn pup lying beside her, wrapped in a blanket, not making a sound.

Instantly he was beside her. Grief and sorrow overcoming his other senses as he collapsed into the pool of blood beside his fallen mate.

"Sango." He wept, voice nearly a whisper, as tears beginning to form in his eyes.

"Sess…Sesshoma…ru…" Sango whispered from beside him.

"Sango!" he yelled as his head snapped up. At that instant baby Kohaku made himself known with a load cry.

Torn between his dying mate and his possibly injured pup he quickly reached over and picked up the pup without ever leaving Sango's side. Upon seeing the pup was uninjured he turned back to Sango.

In his grief his rational thoughts had left him and it wasn't until tenseiga began pulsing violently at his side that he realized he had the power to save his mate. So, without a thought, Sesshomaru stood and sliced the netherworld's demons before they ever had a chance to fully claim her.

He watched as her wounds healed before his eyes and soon she regained consciousness enough to talk.

"Sesshomaru, the baby?!" she worriedly asked as he knelt beside her still exhausted form.

"He's fine Sango, but we must go. The mansion is still afire." He told her, handing her the baby and covering her in his outer kimono before lifting her still blood-covered body into his arms.

"Somio…?" Sango asked wearily as she clutched her baby to her chest.

"I do not know. That part of the mansion had already burnt when I arrived. I am sorry Sango." He said as he ran out of the mansion and into the storm.

The rain had finally begun its full assault on the western countryside as Sesshomaru made his way toward the small cave that was situated in the hills not far from their now destroyed home. He needed to get the two out of the rain and somewhere safe before something else happened. He was nearly to the cave when he heard someone shout his name.

"**SESSHOMARU!" **

Turning he saw Inuyasha running towards him with one hand on tetsaiga's hilt. He did not stop, however, and continued onwards towards the cave knowing that his brother would easily catch up.

When Sesshomaru arrived at the cave he lay Sango down before walking to the back of the cave and retrieving the emergency blankets Sango herself had placed there in case of times like this. He had not thought there would ever be a need for such provisions; boy was he thankful for Sango's foresight. He had just removed his wet outer kimono from around her shivering form and was replacing it with a blanket when Inuyasha arrived.

"Sesshomaru!" he yelled, "Is Sango and the baby ok? What happened?"

"Calm yourself Inuyasha. We shall speak of this after Sango gets some rest." He said calmly despite his mounting tension.

Inuyasha looked into his brother's eyes and simply nodded his assent. Walking to the mouth of the cave he positioned himself so that he would be able to see whatever was coming their way, despite the pouring rain that shortened his line of sight to only a few yards in front of the cave.

Sesshomaru silently thanked his brother for his understanding and began to build a fire before leaning against the cave wall next to Sango and pulling her to him. He had very nearly lost her. Hell, he would have lost her had it not been for the tenseiga.

Not for the first time Sesshomaru mentally thanked his father for leaving him such a precious gift. _'Quite a turn around from my previous thoughts on the sword.'_ Sesshomaru thought, _'It's all because of Sango.'_

He felt her shift at his side and his golden eyes immediately flew to her fragile form.

"What is it Sango? What's wrong?" he asked, confused as to why she was turning her back to Inuyasha and repositioning the babe in her arms.

"I have to feed him Sesshomaru. I didn't get a chance to before we were attacked." She said softly.

"Oh ya, Inuyasha! If I catch you so much as sneaking a peek your dead." She half yelled at his brother with a small smile.

"FEH! As if Sango! That's just weird. I don't think of you that way AT ALL." He said as he moved so that his back was turned to them even more.

With a smile, and without another word, Sango moved the top half of her kimono aside in order to allow Kohaku to breastfeed. Sesshomaru stared in awe as the pup immediately took to feeding without any problems what so ever.

It didn't take long for him to become full and fall asleep, allowing Sango to put her kimono top back into place and once again cuddle up to Sesshomaru's warm body.

"I named him Kohaku, Sesshomaru. Is that ok?" she asked as she began to drift off into sleep; tenseiga having only restored her body, not her energy.

"It's perfect Sango. Just as you are." Sesshomaru said in a tone that Inuyasha had never before heard. He kissed her forehead as she finally fell asleep fully to get some well-deserved rest.

He stared at her resting form for a moment and took in the way that her body curled protectively around Kohaku even in her sleep. His musings were interrupted when Inuyasha's voice called out from the front of the cave.

"Is she really ok Sesshomaru?"

His mind flew back to the image of her mangled body covered in blood sprawled on the floor of the mansion. Guilt once again washed over his body and he winced at the horrid memory.

"I had to use tenseiga, Inuyasha." Was all he said in response to his question.

He felt Inuyasha's aura flare in anger before he managed to calm himself. He knew exactly how Inuyasha felt, more so even, but his anger was repressed by guilt. He had no one to blame but himself for leaving Sango unprotected while she was unable to defend herself. Regret ate away at him causing him to pull Sango's sleeping form closer to him.

"Whenever she wakes up I need to know everything." Inuyasha said, his voice distant and bothered, "And when the storm quits we can make our way to Kaede's village and Kagome can check on Sango and the baby. I'm sure their all out of their mind with worry."

He nodded knowing Inuyasha had turned slightly and would be able to see the nod despite the darkness. He was about to fall back into his previous shame filled thoughts when Inuyasha spoke once more.

"It's not your fault Sesshomaru."

He turned his head slightly shocked by his brother's words. He was taken aback by the conviction in his brother's smoldering eyes. Never before had he seen such sincere emotion directed at him from his younger brother.

A small smile formed on his face as he moved his eyes away from his brothers' identical golden orbs to look down at his mate and pup whom were both sleeping peacefully.

"Thank you Inuyasha." He whispered before settling down to watch the two beings that held his heart sleep as if the horrid tragedy of the evening had never occurred.

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**a/n: AWWW! Brotherly love! hehehe... you just thought I was gonna let Sango die. NO WAY! She's my all time favorite Inu character there's no frikin' way I'd kill her off. But i got you all worried it seems... lol. I guess yall didn't remember that Sesshomaru could use tenseiga to bring her back even if she did die(which she didn't. That's just how strong she is!). Well if you liked it plz read and review! I love to read your reviews so much that I even check the story during my lunch break from school. :D **

**Thanks!!! Texascowgirl-13**


	4. The Boring Journey

**a/n: Well, here's another chappie. :D I did get a few very helpful reviews and changed my writing style a little bit to try to acknowledge the all to true reviews; such as periods inside the quotes vs at the end of the sentence and capitalizing Tenseiga. Not major stuff, but still... Newayz, Miroku may be introduced in the next few chappies as well as the reasoning behind the San/Sess pairing(besides it being my favorite :P). Pasts will be reveiled and the truth will come out! ...Soon.**

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Chapter 4- The "Boring" Journey

When morning arrived Sango awoke to find herself wrapped in Sesshomaru's loving embrace and her baby held gently in his arms. She sat up with a yawn and stretched her sore body to work out all the kinks caused by the previous day's battle coupled with a night spent on a cave floor.

She smiled sleepily at Sesshomaru who looked up from their son to return her friendly greeting with a dazzling smile of his own. It had taken the longest time for Sango to get used to seeing the other side of his cold demeanor. Very few were privileged enough to see the minimum emotions; she was blessed with the right to the full range. However, he only smiled when they were alone which brought to mind an interesting question.

"Where did Inuyasha go Sesshomaru?" she asked with a quick look around the cave to be sure she hadn't overlooked him somehow.

"He returned to the mansion to see what was left," Sesshomaru stated flatly.

She knew what that meant. Inuyasha went back to see if any of the household servants or guards had survived. She prayed that Somio had somehow managed to escape but it wasn't likely; she had seen Takusi slice his claws into the elderly woman's body herself. Few young women could survive injuries that severe, no old women could. Saddened by the fact that her own thoughts had severed her last ray of hope, Sango shook her head to try to rid those thoughts from her mind.

"Sango?" Sesshomaru questioned, "Is something wrong?"

"No Sesshomaru. I'm fine. I was just thinking about Somio."

Sesshomaru was about to reply when Inuyasha walked in to the cave with a grave expression. Sango was immediately worried; a serious Inuyasha was a very bad sign.

"There was no one left Sesshomaru. The bodies I found were charred beyond recognition and I doubt that even Tenseiga could revive them. I also picked up on the trail of the bastard that attacked Sango but the rain washed away what little scent I could pick up after only a few hundred yards."

"I see. Thank you Inuyasha. We will be leaving shortly," Sesshomaru replied calmly, but Sango could hear the anger in his voice.

Knowing that that was her cue to get ready, Sango stood to her feet only to nearly collapse as he legs buckled beneath her. Thanks to Sesshomaru's quick speed and lightning fast reflexes he was able to catch her before she fell to the floor.

"Sango!" he said in a voice slightly loader than his normal tone. Not a yell, but almost.

She could see that Inuyasha had also moved forward to help her when he'd seen her start to fall but Sesshomaru had moved quickly and had caught her before Inuyasha was ever needed. She was touched by his concern though.

"I'm f-fine. Just a little weaker than I thought I'd be," she said as Sesshomaru sat her gently back to the ground.

"You don't LOOK fine Sango! You're as white as a sheet. We need to get you to Kagome so she can see what's wrong with you," Inuyasha said in his normal aggressive, no-nonsense tone.

"Inuyasha is right Sango. You rest and take care of Kohaku, Inuyasha and I will take care of the rest," Sesshomaru said as he handed his pup carefully over to her; worry filled his golden eyes despite his emotional mask.

Sango looked away knowing she could not keep anything from him when those golden eyes were burning into the depths of her soul. Instead she nodded and set about taking care of little Kohaku. Sesshomaru was frustrated by Sango's denial that anything was wrong but knew that he'd find out soon enough and decided not to press her.

When Inuyasha said he'd run to the stream to fill their canteens with water Sango took the opportunity to feed Kohaku again. She was amazed at how quiet and well mannered he was for a two-day-old.

'_Then again, he is his father's son,'_ she thought wryly.

Kohaku had not cried once, while she was awake, since they'd made it to the cave. She was fairly certain that he could already sense the auras in the air around him and could feel that he was safe.

Thoughts of his fearful cries led her mind back to last night's horrible battle that nearly led to her untimely death, as well as that of her newborn. Hate filled her mind as the image of Takusi swinging his sword specifically towards her baby took precedence in her thoughts.

'_I will never let that bastard get you Kohaku,'_ she swore, _'I will slaughter him with my bare hands if he ever comes near you again! That is, if your daddy doesn't get him first.'_

She was pulled from her dark thoughts by Sesshomaru approaching. The look in his eyes told her that it was time to go. She wrapped Kohaku in one of the smaller blankets a placed him securely in the crook of her left arm. Sesshomaru gently picked Sango up and turned towards Inuyasha who was just returning with the filled canteens.

"We are ready Inuyasha," Sesshomaru stated.

"About time!" Inuyasha smirked, "Let's get going."

Sango laughed lightly at Inuyasha's very "Inuyasha-like" behavior. It'd been quite some time since she'd seen him, or Kagome for that matter. She was busy with the baby preparations and Kagome had taken over Kaede's place as priestess for the village; as such neither had very much time to spare. She was quite looking forward to seeing Kagome again for the first time in months. She continued along that train of thought until Inuyasha lengthened his stride to match Sesshomaru's.

"I need to know what happened at the mansion Sango, and the battlefield Sesshomaru."

So Sango told Inuyasha exactly what had happened while Sesshomaru had battled the northern soldiers. She didn't miss how Sesshomaru's hold on her body tightened ever so slightly when she retold how Takusi had slashed her from behind with his claws, and again when he swung his sword towards little Kohaku. She looked up from her place in his arms to see the edges of his eyes beginning to bleed red.

"It's ok Sesshomaru. We're both ok now," she said in a quiet and calming voice while lifting one hand to touch his face.

His eyes slid down to look into her big brown eyes for a moment before he looked back up to the road that he was quickly moving across. She smiled at seeing his eyes return to their normal color as he looked back up to the road, and she brought her hand back down to adjust Kohaku to a more comfortable position.

After a few minutes Sango began to dose off. She could vaguely hear Sesshomaru telling Inuyasha the details of the battle and tried to listen but her fatigue doggedly pulled her into unconsciousness. Oh well, she could always ask him later.

* * *

The group was nearing Kaede's village when Sango suddenly awoke violently, clutching her chest, and began screaming in pain. Sesshomaru's eyes flew to his mate's tiny form that he held gently in his arms and scanned her body trying to discover what was causing her harm.

"Sango! What's wrong? What's happening?"

He was answered by another agonizing scream from Sango. Little Kohaku began to cry as his mother's pain filled screams filled his ears. Sango, despite her current agony, had not tightened her grip on the pup at all; Kohaku's distress was purely from sensing his mother's pain.

"Hurry Sesshomaru! We need to get her to Kagome," Inuyasha yelled as he ran ahead to warn Kagome of Sango's condition so that she'd be able to treat her immediately.

* * *

Sango felt as if her entire body was on fire. The only thing she could feel besides the all-encompassing pain was Kohaku's tiny body that she held in her left arm. Her right hand, however, was tightly clutching the clothing just above her heart.

She focused the entirety of her being on keeping her left arm still. This pain was excruciating but it would be nothing compared to the heartbreak she would feel if she unwittingly crushed her baby.

Barely feeling as Sesshomaru lay her down on the matt in the floor of Kaede's hut, she was immensely aware, however, when her babe was removed from her arms. It was then that the last scrap of self-control left her and she let herself fall into the sea of unending agony.

* * *

**a/n: Ahhh! What's wrong w/ Sango now?! That's for me to know and you to find out. HEHEHE! I'll try to update again as soon as I can but it may not be until Monday. I have the SAT to take tomorrow and I have to help my mom with a craft show and my sister in law has a baby shower... PLUS, I work Sunday... UGH! So much for a weekend. But newayz, I'll try to update ASAP!!!**

**Please read and review!!! I love u reviewers!!!**


	5. The Blazing Fire

**a/n: So I finally got back to the computer and wrote chappie 5. I have yet to do my homework but I'm gonna get to that as soon as I get done here. ;( I got a good number of reviews for chappies 1-4 and I'm loving all of them. I did get a few comments on how Sesshy seems to be out of character in the story so I'm gonna warn you now; he will be OC for probably the whole story. I'm trying to make him as true to the anime as I can but he's mated to Sango in my story what can you expect?!?! Newayz, just thought I'd clear that up. I appreciate all the reviews. Thanks guys! Now, on to the story!**

**"Speach"**

**_'Thoughts'_**

**Disclaimer: Don't own INU!!! ;( TEAR!!!**

**

* * *

Chapter 5- The Blazing Fire**

Sango felt as if her entire body was on fire; her organs were burning from the inside out. Her body wroth on the floor violently, resembling wild animals scratching and clawing trying to escape the confines of the skin.

So engrossed was she in the all encompassing fire, that she was unaware of Kagome working above her fervently attempting to find out what the cause of Sango's screams. She wanted so badly to scream for someone to put the fire out but her vocal chords felt like a smoldering heap of burning ash.

Her heart was the epicenter of the flame. Each flame burst forth from the center of her chest and licked away at the tissues and organs of her body until it reached the edges of her body. She wasn't sure anymore if she was screaming or not but she began to doubt that anything existed beside the fire.

She tried to remember what she was doing before the fire had started to distract herself from the pain but all she could recall was little Kohaku's body and how cool he felt in her arms. All other memories seemed to be burning, going up in flames within her own mind.

She grappled fruitlessly to hold onto her memories as they replayed themselves before her eyes before bursting into flames.

'_NO!' _she cried as she lost more and more of her childhood memories.

No sooner had they become ash than she had forgotten them and her worry was focused on the next images appearing before her eyes. Soon the fire had eaten away all of her childhood memories and moved onto her newer memories; experiences with Inuyasha and the group, the hunt for Naraku, and quickly they approached her life with Sesshomaru.

'_Please!' _she pleaded with the fire, _'My love, my baby. LEAVE THEM ALONE!'_

Her cries went unheeded as the flames drew closer and closer to her memories of her mate and child. Tears began to flow, the only sign that the flames had not consumed the entirety of her body.

"**NOOOOOOO!!!" **

* * *

The instant Sesshomaru laid Sango's trembling body on the floor of Kaede's hut Kagome started trying to identify what was happening. She instructed Sesshomaru to take Kohaku from Sango's arms and as soon as he did what little hold Sango had on her body visibly snapped. Trembling instantly became thrashing and Sesshomaru had to hand Kohaku over to Kaede so that he and Inuyasha could brace Sango's arms and legs while Kagome examined her.

Kagome, now a quite skilled priestess after her extensive training with Kaede, checked over the surface of Sango's skin before ruling out an exterior source and moving on to more extensive testing. Carefully she mixed a number of roots and powders in a small cup before cutting a thin line along Sango's palm with a small knife. Sesshomaru growled slightly but did nothing knowing that it had to be done.

"I'm going to mix this powder with some of her blood to see if she has some kind of demonic poison in her blood stream. If that's not it then I'll try something else, but we're running out of options for what is causing this," Kagome said while allowing some of Sango's blood to drop into the cup containing the herbal mixture.

They watched as the bloody mixture turned a sickly green. Kagome was the only one that knew exactly what the color meant but Sesshomaru was fairly sure it wasn't a good sign.

"Sango's blood tested positive for demonic poison," Kagome stated worriedly "I need a different kind of poison to inject into her system to counteract it or she's going to die.

Sesshomaru immediately thrust his hand towards her and allowed his own vicious green poison to form in his hand.

"What do you want me to do?"

His voice was gruff and forceful. Used to his straightforwardness she simply ran to her big yellow backpack and drew forth a medical syringe that she'd brought from her time in case of emergency. Quickly she drew some of Sesshomaru's demonic poison into the syringe and injected it into one of the veins in Sango's arm. The syringe didn't last long and she barely had enough time to finish the injection before the demonic acid ate away the needle. Discarding the syringe she sat back onto her heels.

"We have to wait a minute before we can see if it worked or not."

Sesshomaru didn't like this. If it was some kind of demonic poison then he should have been able to smell it. He was sure his sense of smell was still working; he could smell his own poison making its way through her system. Why then. Why hadn't he smelled anything in Sango's body before the injection? Currently he could smell his own poison decreasing and knew that it was canceling out the foreign poison.

Sango's screams began to cease and the writhing turned into trembling and then nothing. Her body was completely still except for the slightly unsteady rise and fall of her chest. He and Inuyasha released their holds on her body and he winced at finding large bruises where his hands had been.

"I think she's going to be ok now," Kagome said with a relieved sigh. "I'll take another blood test later on to be sure."

Kagome and Inuyasha stood and left Sesshomaru alone with Sango. He'd nearly lost her twice in a matter of two days; he defiantly deserved some alone time even if she was unconscious.

He held one of her small hands in his own large, clawed one. To think that these now fragile, pale hands had once wielded a huge boomerang against any demon that dared get in their way. Tenderly, he brought her hand to his mouth and gently kissed her fingers. What he wouldn't give for them to return his tender caress.

His mate's condition led his thoughts back to what had caused her current illness. It suddenly occurred to him just whose demonic poison had been in her system.

'_TAKUSI! That bastard!' _he swore, _"I'll rip his eyes from his sockets with __**MY**__ poison claws for this! He will see what true demonic poison feels like!'_

His anger was beginning to manifest and caused him to tighten his grip on his mate's hand ever so slightly, eliciting a groan from Sango. His eyes immediately flew to her face as she began to regain consciousness.

Groaning and mumbling, Sango slowly opened her eyes to see a silver haired figure above her.

"Sesshomaru? What's going on? Where's the baby?" she asked as she fully awoke.

Relief washed over him and he leaned forward and wrapped Sango securely in his arms.

"I thought I'd lost you again," he whispered.

Sango started to cry at her mate's sweet words. It was rare that he acted this romantic and she was moved by his actions. He truly had been worried.

"You could never loose me," she replied in an equally tender voice.

They stayed in each other's embrace for a few moments. Both fully content to stay that way for eternity. However, all good things must come to an end, and it wasn't long before Inuyasha and Kagome walked into the room to find Sango awake.

"Thank god you're awake Sango!" Kagome yelled excitedly. She was incredibly proud that her counteraction idea had worked flawlessly.

Inuyasha replied in his usual fashion with both arms folded in his fire rat robe and crossed across his chest; "Feh. I knew she'd be fine the whole time. Wasn't worried for a second."

Sango stared at the couple blankly for a few moments before turning back to Sesshomaru with a confused expression. Her gaze shifted between the two people standing before her and the man whose arms she currently resided in.

Her brow furrowed and she looked intently focused before asking, "Sesshomaru, who are those people?"

* * *

**a/n: HEHE! Yall probly hate me for always ending in cliffies but I don't believe in ending in a boring ending. It just feels retarded to me for my writing. I have nothing against writers that do, that's just me. Well, yall can probly expect an update sometime tomrrow evening. :D**

**Plz read and REVIEW!!!**


	6. The Brewing Desire

**a/n: Wohoo! I got my first review saying that they saw the similarities between Swords of an Honorable ruler and my first two chapters! Yes! I was hoping that someone would notic that I structured the whole first two chapters around the movie with only slight differences except for Sango fighting back. :D I didn't want to say anything so I was waiting until someone noticed and someone finally did! I thought that the irony would be quite fitting considering that at the time Sesshomaru thought his father a fool for rushing to a human woman who was bearing his half demon child and that's exactly what happened in chappies one and two. HEHE! Anyways, if you didn't notice then go watch the movie and then read the first two chapters again. You'll notice it for sure now! ...Newayz, on the the story!!! Oh ya, it's kinda limey but not really. Still T rated. :D**

**"Speech"**

**_'Thoughts'_**

**Disclaimer: I wanna own Inuyasha but I don't. So there. **

* * *

Chapter 6- The Brewing Desire

Kagome was completely hysterical. Nothing anyone could do helped her current emotional status in the slightest. Even Inuyasha's efforts were in vain.

"She can't remember! Everything! You, me, Miroku, even Kohaku! How can she not remember her brother? She loved her brother so much that she named her baby after him when he died! How can she not remember?!"

"Calm down Kagome. We'll find some way to fix this, I promise." Inuyasha said in yet another attempt to calm his distraught mate.

"How Inuyasha? I don't even know where to begin. I've never dealt with anything like this before. Kohaku is the only person I've ever known who's suffered from memory loss and that was because of Naraku. How am I supposed to help her when I don't know what happened in the first place?" Kagome cried with tears still coursing down her face.

Inuyasha sighed. Kagome was right and as much as he wanted to reassure her he knew that he couldn't tell her anything that she didn't already know. All he could do was hold her and try to let her know that everything would turn out all right in the end.

Sesshomaru had stayed with Sango until she had fallen asleep and then fled to the woods to release some of his pent up rage, likely annihilating half of the forest. He hadn't been gone long before Kagome's thin mask of calm had broken down and she had sobbed brokenly into Inuyasha's shoulder.

Neither had seen Sango since she had told Sesshomaru that she didn't know them. Kagome had pulled an incredibly fake smile onto her face and told her that it was ok, that they would figure out what had happened to her, and not to worry.

* * *

Sango, of course, had no idea what they were talking about at all. She guessed that she must know them somehow because they had called her by name. She had asked Sesshomaru but he had just stared at her with a shocked look on his face. The tiny dark haired priestess that she thought was named Kagome had smiled at her, quite obviously a fake smile, and told her that everything would be all right and they'd help her.

'_What was that crazy woman talking about? I am in perfect health,'_ Sango thought, _'I just wish Sesshomaru would let me take care of Kohaku. I don't need anymore rest.'_

Bored, she sat on the mat in the middle of the floor and cast her eyes around the room of the hut that she was "resting" in. The small room had two shelves on three of the four walls, the only one that didn't hold shelves was the entrance, and each shelve held numerous colorful bottles that contained all kinds of herbal potions and remedies. The only other objects in the room were her and Sesshomaru's few possessions and the mat she was sitting upon.

Speaking of Sesshomaru, Sango began to wonder where he had gone. She assumed that he had probably waited until she had fallen asleep before he left to see to his own problems. He always did that. Neglecting his own needs to care for hers and only leaving her side when she was asleep.

'_Ugh. That man… er, demon. He needs to worry more about his self and less about my needs. I'm not even hurt.' _She complained to herself.

By now she could hear the priestess woman outside her tent arguing with Sesshomaru's half demon brother. She couldn't make out what they were saying but she decided that now would be the perfect time to sneak out. Quietly standing, she approached the door and peeked out from behind the flap. Seeing that the couple had their backs turned and were currently embracing she made a mad dash for the next closest object that just so happened to be the edge of the forest.

"Now," she said aloud to herself, "that's better."

Enjoying her little excursion she decided to walk around the woods for a bit and see if she could find a small stream to wash her face off in. She walked for a little while before finally finding a small stream that would suit her needs perfectly. Kneeling next to the clear blue water, she gathered some in her hands before splashing it onto her face.

She was unaware, however, of the demonic presence that had been following her since she had first entered the woods. With her memories gone all the training she had learned had been lost in one fell swoop and it wasn't until the demon was nearly upon her that her instincts took over where her mind was lacking.

As the demon lunged for her she turned quickly and reached for the katana that was not at her side. Her momentum sent her tumbling backwards into the stream with a scream and made her the perfect target for the weak demon. The demon, however, never got the chance to become a real danger for Sesshomaru materialized out of the green foliage and slashed the demon in half with his claws and a snarl. There was no way that some low class demon was going to take his mate from him.

He turned to see Sango sitting waist deep in the stream completely soaked to the bone with a surprised look on her face. Her hair was plastered to her head and the length that reached the water swirled around her like a watery halo. Her appearance would have made even the most cold-hearted killer laugh, but he didn't, because he's Sesshomaru.

"Sesshomaru! Um… How did you find me?" she asked, trying desperately to divert his attention from the danger that he'd just saved her from.

"What are you doing out here Sango? I told you to stay in the old priestess' hut and rest," Sesshomaru questioned, completely ignoring the fact that Sango had spoken at all.

Moving forward he pulled her from the river and made sure she could stand on her own before stepping back to await her answer.

"Well I got bored and I couldn't find you so I decided to go for a walk," Sango said while looking at the ground and kicking at some of the pebbles that had somehow accumulated around the stream. Water dripped off her clothes and hair and soon a puddle had formed at her feet to accompany the rocks.

Sesshomaru sighed at her foolish behavior. She hadn't acted this way in quite some time and he had to repress the smile that wanted so badly to grace his face at seeing his mate acting so foolishly. Sango looked up to see a small smile on Sesshomaru's face and heaved a sigh of relief. Maybe she wasn't in trouble after all.

"Come Sango, let's get you dried off," he said as he approached her.

"But I'm all wet Sesshomaru and I would get you soaked too. Plus, I'm perfectly capable of walking on my own," she said with her hands on her hips.

Sesshomaru just smirked before flashing forward and scooping her into his arms in a blindingly smooth motion. Sango let out a surprised scream and laughed as Sesshomaru leaned down to kiss her gently.

"I _guess_ that was worth having to be carried back to the village," Sango said playfully.

Sesshomaru flashed one of his dazzling smiles before leaning down and whispering sensually into her ear.

"Then I'll just have to make it worth your while later tonight won't I?"

Sango's eyes widened dramatically as a wave of desire washed over her entire body. She hadn't been with Sesshomaru in a long time due to the pregnancy. Their intimacy had been put on hold for nine months and now she was soaking wet in his arms and he was the one making the advances. Usually she initiated their activities and it was very rare that he took the first step.

She leaned up and very slowly pressed her lips against his while rubbing her chest against his rock hard body. She felt his body stiffen and he moaned slightly in pleasure.

"Take me away my love," she whispered seductively.

Whatever problems she was supposedly having could wait until later. It was already becoming dark and she planned on devoting the rest of their journey to pleasuring her mate so that he would be fully ready when they arrived at the village.

With an evil grin she began sucking at his neck, trailing kisses along his throat and up to his soft spot that resided just behind his left ear. Another moan escaped his lips followed by a small growl. Sango ceased her administrations to look up at Sesshomaru with a slightly confused expression. He looked down at her with a hunger in his eyes that she hadn't seen in quite a while.

"If you keep doing that we may not make it to the village," he stated in a clipped voice, the desire practically flowing off him in waves.

She laughed and settled herself back in his arms. They were approaching the village and she supposed that she could wait just a few more minutes.

* * *

**a/n: So there you go! I did get another few reviews saying that Sesshomaru is OC and I would once again like to say that ITS A SAN/SESSHY STORY! DUH HE'S GONNA BE OC, HE'S IN LOVE WITH A HUMAN!!! Sorry, just had to get that outta my system. Don't like the pairings then don't read is all I can say cuz I aint changing my story to fit the people that don't like the pairings. Any other criticism is very much appreciated! I'll try to update again tomorrow(try means I more than likely will:P). And Miroku is comin into the picture pretty soon. Enjoy!!!**

**Plz read and REVIEW!!!**


	7. The Blank Slate

**a/n: HI YALL! Sorry for not updating for a while. School's been crazy and I haven't been able to get the time to write a new chapter until tonight. Also, I got a review awhile back about the OC-ness of some of the characters in my story. It has been brought to my attention that when I said that some of the characters would be OC in my A/N's that it sounded like I was blaming it solely on the pairing. I apologise for it sounding like that and I want you all to know that I take full responsibility for making my character's OC in my stories. NEWAYZ, I plan to update much more often this weekend cuz I don't have much going on except work on Sunday. But ON TO THE STORY!!!**

**"SPEACH"**

**_'THOUGHTS'_**

**_"WHISPER"_(iS ONLY AT THE END OF THE CHAPPIE AND IS THE ONLY THING BOLDED)**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Inuyasha, blah,blah, and some more blah... :(**

* * *

Chapter 7- The Blank Slate

"Ok Sango. We need you to tell us the very first thing that you can remember," Kagome said as she, Inuyasha, and Kaede all formed a semi-circle around Sango who sat next to Sesshomaru with Kohaku in her arms a respective distance from the other three.

"Well Lady Kagome, the first thing that I can remember is my life with Sesshomaru. I don't really remember anything before that. But sometimes when I pass by an object that seems familiar I get an odd sense that I've been there before, my head hurts a little bit, and I can see blurry images but when I try to look closer it really hurts so I stop trying." Sango said to Kagome, not missing the hurt look that the girl tried to cover when Sango had called her _'Lady Kagome'_ not just plain old _'Kagome'_ or _'Kagome-chan' _like she would have if they were close friends.

But what was she to do? She did not know this woman and she was a priestess, a woman to be respected and addressed as such. However, seeing such a hurt look from the woman made her realize that she MUST know her from somewhere so she drudged through her memories and tried to find the barest hint of the black haired priestess. After a few minutes she finally caught a blurry glimpse of "Lady Kagome" at her and Sesshomaru's wedding. It was quite blurry but the brilliant smile and long dark hair that was oddly styled set her apart from the rest of the women.

Intrigued, Sango focused intently on the woman and the image began to clear into the smiling face that she had seen when the young priestess had first entered the tent when she had awoken the first time, before she found out that Sango had no recollection of her at all. With that clarity, however, came pain. Intense and stabbing pain shot across her mind like bludgeon to the head. The hand that wasn't currently holding the baby shot up and grasped tightly to her forehead and wadded itself in her bangs as a load cry of pain rang out. The stabbing pain reminded her of the burning and she was afraid that it was beginning to happen again until her mind drifted away from the image and the pain dulled.

She could feel Sesshomaru shift towards her quickly and cradle her in his arms while putting one large, clawed hand on her forehead and gently removing her fist from her bangs. She looked up at him, feeling his eyes penetrate to the depths of her soul, and knew that he could see the intense pain in her eyes caused by simply clarifying one piece of one memory. This was not good news for either of them.

"What happened child? Did ye remember anything?" Kaede asked from her position beside Kagome.

Sango nodded before replying; "I saw Lady Kagome at my wedding. She was smiling and wearing an odd looking kimono."

The pain had not entirely gone away but the memory she had cleansed was now clear to her and she could see that Kagome, dressed in an oddly short kimono with a green and white shirt, stood by Inuyasha who had a young fox demon with shining golden hair and dazzling emerald eyes standing at about shoulder height beside him. _'Shippo' _a dim voice echoed through her memories and she knew somehow that it was the young fox's name. _'He grew so much,' _her thoughts called.

A slight twinge of pain accompanied the newly gained knowledge but it was not enough for Sango to allow the others to see it. They must all think that she was weak enough already.

"Aye, I see. I believe I know what has happened to ye child," Kaede said knowingly.

"What has happened to my mate old woman?" Sesshomaru asked bluntly.

Sango sweat dropped beside him and shook her head. Leave it to her mate to get directly to the point.

'_At least he could have been nicer about it,'_ thought Sango amusedly.

However, before Sango could apologize for her mate's rude behavior Kaede immediately began to explain her theory; being a skilled priestess of her age gave her quite an advantage in the field of medical knowledge and Sango respected her wisdom and listened intently.

"I have seen this only once before. The young woman afflicted was the mistress to a prominent fox demon and when his mate found out about the affair she immediately set out to kill her mate's mistress and get revenge for his betrayal. However, she decided that an even crueler punishment than death would be to burn away the memories of her mate's relationship with the woman with poison. So she went to a witch and bought a powder that she could mix with her own poison and coat on a dagger so that whenever she inflicted even a minor wound upon the woman that the poison would sink into her blood stream and make its way into her mind. From there it would painfully burn all of the woman's memories of anyone she ever knew if not countered with another type of poison."

"So there's no way to reverse this Lady Kaede?" Sango asked with anxiety in her voice; what pieces of herself was she missing now that she was no longer whole?

"Nay child, that is not what I have said. Let me finish. When the fox demon found out what his mate had done he immediately demanded that she restore the woman's memories. She refused but he would not take no for an answer and forced her to tell him the cure. I dare not say by what means he forced her but ye should know that it was painful. Soon she told him that there were only two ways to restore the burned memories. One, to be exposed to a place that holds important memories and one by one painfully force yourself to remember causing excruciating pain. Or two, mix the poison from the demon that administered it with a powder that can only be acquired through dealings with witches or dark priestesses. Those are the only ways. The fox demon easily acquired his now former mate's poison and kept it in a small vile but try as he may he could never find a witch who would give him the antidote. And as such, his mistress whom he later mated never fully remembered their experiences before the poisoning."

Afraid of the possibilities of what this may mean for her Sango turned to Sesshomaru with tears beginning to form in her eyes. What if they never found a witch who would give them the antidote? What if she never remembered her past? Who she was? The tears started to fall and she turned her eyes down from Sesshomaru's, ashamed of what he might see if she continued looking at him. She felt him tighten his grip on her protectively and cuddled further into his chest, turning her face so that his strong chest would conceal her tears.

"We WILL find the cure Sango. I promise you that. And I will not stop until I have slaughtered the bastard who has brought you such pain," Sesshomaru said simply, his voice a mix between angry growl and a consoling lull.

The promise and threat in his voice calmed her as she realized that he would stop at nothing to return her to her former self and that very few people ever apposed her mate and lived; Inuyasha and herself, before they became mates, being the only two. Smiling, she looked back up to her mate who was staring back at her intently. The conviction and anger in his eyes only further proved his promise to be true.

Her tears dried and she once again pushed herself closer to his chest for comfort. This was going to be a long road and she wanted to bask in the comfort of his embrace before he left to carry out his promise. She didn't know when that was going to be but she had a feeling that he wouldn't let her stay in suffering this way for very long.

Their time together was cut short, however, as little Kohaku decided to make his hunger known in the form of a tiny cry. Sango looked down and realized that she hadn't fed him in a few hours and it was about that time again.

Laughing, she stood with Sesshomaru's help and began to head into the other room. As she passed Kagome, however, she whispered something so quietly that even Sesshomaru and Inuyasha had to strain themselves to hear.

_"_**_Thank you, Kagome-chan. Thank you for not giving up on me."_ **

Kagome let out a small gasp. Sango had called her "Kagome-chan." Did that mean she remembered her even a little? Tears welled in her eyes as she whipped around to see Sango turn just before entering the other room to give her a slightly sad smile that quickly vanished as the flap separating the two rooms whipped shut.

* * *

**a/n: Wohoo! Very explanitory chappie!!! I hope it made sense to everybody because I had Kaede say a whole bunch of info all at once. :D If it doesn't just let me know in your reviews and I'll try to clarify next chappie. **

**NEW!!! PREVIEW TO NEXT CHAPPIE!!!**

**Chapter 8- The Betrayer and the Betrayed**

**_"Sango?"_**

**_"Yes, I am Sango. Who are you monk?"_**

**_"It's me. Miroku. Don't you remember me?"_**

**_heheheheh! Tell me if you like the chappie preview and I may keep doing it! READ AND REVIEW!!! _**


	8. The Betrayer and The Betrayed

**a/n: Well here's a new chappie! As I said in the preview from the last chappie Miroku is introduced in this chappie. Also, I didn't get any reviews saying wether or not they liked the preview to the next chapter at the end of each chapter so I'm not going to do it again unless you review and tell me if yall like it or not. ON TO THE STORY!!!**

**"Speach"**

**_'Thoughts'_**

**Disclaimer: I aint bein the one that owns that show that be called Inuyasha. (If you understand that then you are very hick and I'm proud of you! :D) **

* * *

Chapter 8- The Betrayer and The Betrayed

Sango was beginning to get extremely restless sitting in Kaede's hut. Boredom was reigning supreme as she waited for Sesshomaru to return from supervising Kagome as she bathed Kohaku. She had made up her mind that whenever he returned that she would demand to go for a walk around the village and there would be hell to pay if he said no.

After waiting for another fifteen minutes she was about to doze off when Kagome and Sesshomaru entered the hut. Kagome smiled as she handed Sango her freshly cleansed son.

"He was perfect Sango. He didn't even cry when I dipped his back in the water."

"That's good. Thank you Kagome. I appreciate your help with Kohaku," Sango said, "since SOMEONE won't let me do anything,"

She sent Sesshomaru a glare and earned an amused smirk from her mate. She knew he was over-protective but come on, she didn't feel any pain unless she tried to force her memories to surface.

"Sesshomaru. I am going to go walk through the village now."

Her tone was petulant and her expression promised the doghouse if he refused. Sesshomaru's smirk widened at his mate's statement and the way her eyes dared him to try her. He had known all along that Sango was recovered but he was feeling playful and wanted to see how long it would take before she snapped. She had actually lasted longer than he had anticipated.

"Very well Sango. I shall accompany you," he stated indifferently but his eyes were filled with amusement.

Sango smirked thinking she had won the argument, however she had expected much more resistance from her highly over-protective mate. It then occurred to her that her mate had been toying with her all along. She turned to give Sesshomaru a piece of her mind but found that she was the only on in the hut besides little Kohaku who was asleep in her arms.

"Your father is a very odd demon," she told Kohaku's sleeping form.

Walking to the pile of things Lady Kaede had given her, she grabbed the cloth sling she was to use to carry Kohaku in when she went for long walks so that her arms wouldn't get tired. She slung it around her shoulder and gently laid Kohaku in it before exiting the hut to find Sesshomaru leaning against the wall beside the door wearing a smirk. She sent him a mock glare before heading out into the village.

"So I'm odd, am I?" Sesshomaru questioned with a grin from her right side.

"Yes you are," she said matter-of-factly, "and I wouldn't have it any other way."

They continued on through the village shops idly talking for quite some time before Sango became tired and they made their way over to sit on a small bench beneath a shade tree. They hadn't been sitting long when Inuyasha approached and told Sesshomaru that they needed to speak privately.

"We shall return shortly Sango. Stay here," Sesshomaru told Sango before he and Inuyasha walked a short distance away and turned a corner.

Sango was content to watch the hustle and bustle of the village while rocking Kohaku gently in her arms. She was startled when a voice called her name loudly from somewhere to her right. She turned towards the voice and saw a man with dark purple robes and short black hair that was pulled into a small ponytail at the base of his head. He seemed eerily familiar and her head started to throb as he approached.

"Sango?"

"Yes, I am Sango. Who are you monk?"

"It's me. Miroku. Don't you remember me?"

Her heart seemed to stop as the monk's voice echoed throughout her mind. _'Miroku…' 'Miroku…' 'Miroku…'_

All her memories of the monk came flooding back in one pain filled burst. Both hands flew to her head and she screamed as the images flashed before her eyes back to back in rapid procession. Kohaku began to cry loudly from his position in the sling across Sango's chest. As the memories continued on in their blinding parade Sango felt her body begin to slide of the bench and had to throw her arms out to catch herself to prevent her body from crushing Kohaku into the ground.

After catching herself one had flew back to its' clutching position in her bangs. Kohaku's cries became louder as his mother's body shook with pain. Miroku stood dumbfounded and afraid as Sango collapsed screaming before his eyes. He was about to move forward to ask her what was wrong when he was suddenly knocked aside by a blur of silver and Sesshomaru suddenly materialized by her side.

He was shocked to see Sesshomaru cradle the trembling woman in his arms and Sango willingly leaned into him for support. What was going on here? He had only been gone for five years and he thought that Sango would surely be waiting for him when he returned, but memories of their last encounter sought to prove him otherwise. Surely Sango had not found comfort in Sesshomaru after their separation.

His attention was inevitably brought to the small babe that lay in a sling in Sango's arms. The pup was quite obviously Sesshomaru's but he could not see any signs of the mother in his face. He was going to further contemplate the possibility of Sango and Sesshomaru being together when Sesshomaru smoothly scooped the woman and babe into his arms and turning back towards the direction of Kaede's hut.

His blood turned cold as Sesshomaru sent him the iciest glare he had ever seen, even of those sent towards Inuyasha. That, accompanied by a menacing growl, caused him to cower away from the demon that held the woman, which he had somehow caused to be in pain, in his arms. With one last icy glare Sesshomaru vanished from his sight in a flash of silver and white.

He let out a huge sigh of relief as the intense aura that had permeated the area while Sesshomaru had been there vanished with the frosty demon himself.

'_Sesshomaru seemed intensely protective of Sango. That is very odd. There's no way that Sango has gotten over me,'_ he thought condescendingly, _"and even if she did, I'll just have to remind her who her __**real**__ love is. I'm sure she's already gotten over what happened five years ago.'_

Miroku was about to head towards Kaede's hut, where he was sure Sesshomaru had taken Sango, but was distracted when a small group of pretty women passed by him and headed towards a tavern. With a perverted grin he turned away from the direction of Kaede's hut and ran to catch up with the group of women and ask each one to bear his child.

'_Sango can wait. She's waited five years and she'll be waiting for me tomorrow as well,' _Miroku thought dismissively as he began to plan his activities for the night.

* * *

**a/n: Gah! Miroku is such a jerk! Plus, he never did tell yall what he did to Sango that was so bad. And it was bad too! I mean it made her turn to Sesshomaru so it had to be drastic. :D Newayz, I do like Miroku as a character but in my story he's gonna be a mean frikin jerk... ^.^ TEHEE! I hope to update tomorrow.**

**Read and REVIEW!!! PLEAZE!!!!!!!!!!!!! (and thank you ^-^)**


	9. The Blame

**a/n: Well here's the chappie that pretty much explains why Sango and Miroku aren't together in my story. It doesn't really tell you why Sango and Sesshy are together(that is yet to come :D) but it explains the reason behing it not being Mir/San... Oh ya, Sesshy and Sango are both kinda OC in this chapter so just a heads up. And yes it is cuz of my writing not the pairing. Don't like, don't read ;D...... ON TO THE STORY!!!**

**(I'm not gonna do the "speach" and 'thought' dealies anymore because if you've read this far I think you've got that :P)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inu... nuff said... **

* * *

Chapter 9- The Blame

Sesshomaru arrived at Lady Kaede's hut for the second time in a matter of two days with his unconscious mate in his arms. Sango had fallen unconscious shortly after he had taken her into his arms. Kohaku ha cried the whole time Sango had been screaming in pain but fell silent and drifted off to sleep in along with his mother.

Explaining the situation to the old priestess, who was the only one currently in the hut, he lay Sango down on the mat and picked Kohaku up gently. It had not taken Sesshomaru long to realize that his pup was acutely intoned to his mother's emotions and well-being. As he looked down at the pup in his arms his mind temporarily wandered away from his mate's current predicament and he was filled with immense pride of the babe he had made with his mate.

'_He will grow to be a great warrior,'_ Sesshomaru thought proudly as the babe wrapped its' tiny finger around his clawed one in his sleep.

A small smile crossed his face causing both of his fangs to become visible. The dazzling smile was quickly discarded, however, as his mate awoke violently at his side. Her body flew up as she awoke with a look that spoke of betrayal and anger mixed with sadness and hurt.

"Sango, are you alright?" Sesshomaru asked as he shifted closer to his mate's side.

Wordlessly her chocolate colored eyes shifted to Sesshomaru before filling with tears and vanishing from his sight as she threw her body forward and sobbed into his kimono. He was shocked for a moment at Sango's emotional breakdown before he remembered exactly what the good for nothing monk had said to her when he'd left.

"I'm… I'm s-so sorry Sesshomaru," Sango sobbed brokenly into his chest, "I d-don't deserve you…I'm not go-good enough for y-you."

His anger began to manifest at his mate's words. The bastard monk had not only cheated on her and broken her heart, but had told her that the reason he sough other women was because she was not pretty enough or good enough for a powerful monk like him. Thus confirming all her deepest and darkest fears.

'_Pathetic filthy monk! I should have torn him to pieces when Sango told me what he'd done to her the first time,'_ Sesshomaru thought angrily.

It had taken Sesshomaru months for him to convince Sango that what the monk said had not been true and now that memory had been refreshed in her mind and she was reliving the pain and hopelessness she had felt when the monk had abandoned her.

With a growl Sesshomaru held her tighter to his body with the arm that didn't hold their pup. He would deal with the bastard monk later, for now his mate needed him.

"No Sango. That isn't true and you know it," he said gently, "You are my mate and I love you for who you are not what you aren't. That filthy monk is the one that is not worthy of you. Do not listen to his spiteful lies."

Her sobbing slowed and she looked up at him with red, tear-filled eyes. The pain and shame within them caused his inner demon to stir. His eyes bled red slightly as his demon roared its anger. The monk was going to pay for hurting his mate.

Kohaku had awoken to his mother's sobs and once again began to cry. Sango looked surprised for a moment before her expression softened and she whipped her eyes and held out her arms for her pup. Sesshomaru passed the crying babe over to his mother and watched as Sango quietly calmed him.

"Shh… It's ok Kohaku. Mommy's ok. I'm sorry for making you cry little one but it's ok now."

"Sango…" Sesshomaru began but was cut off by Sango before he could speak further.

"I know Sesshomaru. I'm sorry for breaking down like that and upsetting the baby but Miroku's words cut me so deeply, and reliving every memory of it at the same time…" she trailed off, her eyes never moving from the pup in her arms.

Sesshomaru sighed and pulled Sango gently into his lap. She still remembered what he had told her the first time and there was nothing more he could say to comfort her. Instead he wrapped his arms around her tiny frame and rested his chin on the top of her head as she cuddled further into his warmth.

Their tender moment was broken as a loud yell echoed throughout the hut and irritated his sensitive ears.

"Get your dirty claws off of my woman dog demon!" Miroku yelled from the entrance of the hut.

**---------(a/n: I was going to end here but since no one seems to like my cliffies I decided to be nice and continue…:D)------------------------------------------------------------**

Miroku had just finished pleasuring a number of the village woman and decided that he would make his grand appearance to the woman he'd left behind. He imagined he would find her crying and comfort her into falling for him again. He was not prepared to find her in the arms of another, much less Sesshomaru, the king of human haters.

Sesshomaru snarled and his eyes flashed red as his demonic aura rose.

"You DARE to try to claim MY mate as your woman! And after what you've done to her?" Sesshomaru roared in anger, the only thing restraining him from disemboweling the monk where he stood was his mate and pup currently residing in his arms.

Carefully he stood and moved in between Sango and Kohaku and the monk. His demonic aura was becoming frighteningly high and Sango was amazed that Kohaku was not crying as his father's aura skyrocketed. Miroku, however, unwisely stood his ground against the enraged demon. The purple stripes on his cheeks enlarging and becoming more jagged as he barely contained his inner demon.

'_I've dealt with demon's bigger than him before,_' Miroku thought trying to boost his already low confidence level, '_If only I still had my wind tunnel.'_

* * *

In the blink of an eye Sesshomaru flew forward and slammed his fist into the startled monk's face. The half-conscious monk flew backwards out of the hut and rolled quite a distance before a tree stopped his momentum. Sesshomaru was about to step forward to finish off the pathetic human who'd dared to try to claim what was his when he felt a small hand gently grasp his arm.

"Don't Sesshomaru. We do not want to sink to his level even if he may deserve it," Sango said in a quiet voice.

He wanted so badly to shrug her off and finish off what he'd started but he knew that Sango was already in a delicate mental state and he didn't want to cause her any more undue stress. He took in a long calming breath and forced his demon back inside his cage, allowing his features to return to normal.

He had just finished calming down and was turning back towards Sango when Inuyasha arrived with Kagome on his back. He stopped swiftly and Kagome was off his back instantly to attend to the monk who was reduced to a bloody pulp. Inuyasha was at his brother's side quickly, one hand on Tetsaiga's hilt, looking him over to be sure that he had himself back under control seeing as he was standing within reaching distance of his mate and pup, and were he to attack them while in his demonic rage he would regret it for the rest of his life. Seeing that Sesshomaru was under control Inuyasha removed his hand from the sword's hilt and took a relieved breath; he truly had not wanted to deal with his brother when he was in a full demonic rage.

"What happened Sesshomaru? I leave you guys along for a few hours and come back to find a huge mess," Inuyasha said slightly annoyed.

In truth he was proud that his brother had handled the monk that way. After Miroku had broken Sango's heart and then rubbed salt in her wounds by telling her that she was a pathetic, scarred excuse of a woman and that she wasn't worthy of him, Inuyasha had wanted to deal with the monk in a quite similar way. Sango was his little sister after all, and the monk had hurt her badly. Sesshomaru just ended up finding Miroku before he did or he would have readily beaten the monk upon his return.

Inuyasha watched Sesshomaru take Sango back into the hut before turning to see Kagome tending to the monk's injuries. He waited for a moment before Sesshomaru reemerged from the tent. The two walked a short distance away from the hut so that they would be out of hearing range of both of their mates.

"Her memories?" Inuyasha questioned immediately.

"All returned to her instantly when the bastard monk first arrived," Sesshomaru said with a dark look towards the limp form of Miroku a short distance away.

"So what did the bastard say that got you so angry?" Inuyasha said with a small smile.

"He tried to claim my mate as his woman," Sesshomaru said in his usual calm voice, though his eyes betrayed him.

"Then I'm surprised you didn't do more," Inuyasha said in shock, his voice held a slightly angry tone. He'd certainly done more if the monk had tried that with Kagome.

"Trust me, I would have had Sango not asked me to stop," he stated angrily.

Inuyasha gained a new respect for his brother in that moment. He doubted that he had enough self-control to stop himself once another male had challenged him for his mate. He watched as Sesshomaru glared towards the fallen monk with an angry look in his golden eyes. He was about to ask Sesshomaru how Sango had taken her newly reacquired memories when Kagome called for him to come help her haul the monk into a hut.

He nodded to Sesshomaru before making his way over to his mate who'd just finished tending to the monk's wounds.

"Anything life threatening Kagome?" Inuyasha asked, not sounding all that worried about his former friend.

"No, but Sesshomaru did break his nose and another few bones in his face," Kagome said, "I really can't believe Sesshomaru left it at a single blow."

"I'll explain the details later Kagome. For now just leave the bastard where he lies, he doesn't deserve to be under the same roof as Sango and I seriously doubt Sesshomaru would be able to contain his anger a second time," Inuyasha said as he pulled Kagome to her feet, "I'll deal with the monk personally when he regains consciousness, whenever that may be.

With that, the couple headed back towards Kaede's hut so that Kagome could check up on Sango after her latest "memory attack", as Kagome had dubbed Sango's painful memory returns.

"I sure hope that Miroku stays down for a while. At least he can't say something stupid to piss off Sesshomaru while he's unconscious," Kagome told Inuyasha just before they stepped into Kaede's hut.

* * *

**a/n: Well there it is... Miroku's a MAJOR jerk in my story and I kinda feel bad for making him that way but that's just how it has to be for the story line :( ... I may update again tonight but I have a 30-40 problem chemistry packet to do and I have tennis practice too. I'll try my best. :D**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW!!! TELL ME WHAT YOU LIKE AND DON'T LIKE, I ALWAYS APPRECIATE IT!!! ^.^**


	10. The Big Brother

**a/n: Ok yall, here's another chappie. But I must warn all Miroku lovers that you probly won't like this chapter and if you really really like Miroku then you may not want to continue with the story(cuz he's really a jerk and its gonna get him in trouble). Also, I was lookin through the reviews and saw that I had somehow reviewed my own story and it was extremely retarded sounding. Guess what. My little sister decided she was going to review and didn't check to make sure I'd logged out. -.- So neways, that wasn't me. ON TO THE STORY!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Inuyasha even if I wish I did. **

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Chapter 10- The Big Brother

It was just beginning to get dark when Miroku finally regained consciousness. His face felt as if it had been slammed into a tree numerous times and he was grateful for whomever had bandaged his wounds, had they not been treated they would hurt much more. He guessed it had been Kagome seeing as he was so close to Kaede's hut.

He opened his eyes expecting to find himself staring at Kaede's ceiling only to find himself looking up into the canopy of the tree that his body had slammed into earlier after Sesshomaru's punch.

'_What in the seven hells,'_ Miroku thought as he slowly sat up and moved his still cloth covered hand to cradle his face.

Gently touching his now throbbing face, he looked towards the hut to see a dim light coming from around the flap that served as a door. Nothing seemed wrong but why then was he still on the ground outside?

It then occurred to him that Sesshomaru must be residing in the hut with Sango and the others and had likely told Inuyasha and Kagome that they could not bring his injured form in while Sesshomaru was there. That would explain his being bandaged but remaining outside.

"Bastard demon," Miroku spat as he stumbled to his feet and began to head towards the hut while wrapping a sacred sutra around his fist, "I'll show him. That hit was purely luck and I was not prepared for such a sneaky attack."

He was about to enter the hut and show the demon just how powerful he really was, and that his punch had been nothing more than a luck shot, when Inuyasha appeared in front of him with an angry look.

"Inuyasha. It has been quite awhile my friend. Thank you for bandaging my wounds. Now step aside so I can teach that bastard brother of yours a lesson," Miroku said with a malicious smile at his last statement.

He was surprised when Inuyasha growled and grabbed him by the front of his robes before roughly dragging him away from the hut and into a nearby clearing. He didn't know what to expect from the half demon, as Inuyasha's moods were about as predictable as the timing of a demon's attack. However, the aura that he was emitting did not bode well for the monk and he was beginning to get nervous.

"What's wrong Inuyasha? You seem upset," Miroku asked as Inuyasha finally released his robes and walked a few more steps before turning.

"WHAT'S WRONG? You stupid monk, what do you think is wrong? How dare you come back here after what you did to Sango! I was behind a tree and I heard the whole thing so don't try to lie!" Inuyasha yelled in anger.

"What's it to you Inuyasha? Sango is none of your concern," the monk said as his once friendly voice laced with scorn and loathing, "Or Sesshomaru for that matter? The bitch is mine to do with what I will and I don't care if what I do hurts her; she'll still be waiting when I return to claim what is mine."

The monk barely dodged as Inuyasha swung his fist quickly at his already injured face. He could hardly keep pace with the half-demon as Inuyasha repeatedly swung closed fists at his face.

"YOU BASTARD! You do NOT own Sango and she will never wait for you again! She is mated to my brother, which makes her even more of my little sister than she was before. As such I will protect her, her emotional health, and her pup from bastard's like you that try to hurt her."

* * *

Inuyasha could barely contain his anger at his former friend's words. He had never realized what a truly despicable person the monk was until he had betrayed Sango five years ago before leaving, and now he had returned to cause Sango more pain.

'_Let him try,_' Inuyasha thought with a growl, _'Sesshomaru and I will both protect Sango now. No one hurts my little sister and gets away with it!'_

During his travels to reassemble the sacred jewel and destroy Naraku he had grown to see Sango as a close and trusted friend. Soon they grew closer as they relied on each other battle after battle. It wasn't long before he was feeling almost as protective of Sango as he was of Kagome. At the time he had been confused, but upon speaking to Kagome he realized that what he was feeling was brother-like love. He continued to view Sango more and more as a little sister until after Naraku was defeated and the monk had betrayed Sango the first time. He swore that he would protect her from anything or anyone that tried to hurt her that way again and had trained hard with her to help her overcome her sadness. When his brother came into the picture he was reluctant to allow him to court Sango; after all, she didn't need to go through that kind of pain again. He was happy when the two had mated and Sango became his sister through blood as well. Now he truly felt like her big brother and the monk's words angered him greatly.

He quickened his pace slightly and landed a hit easily to the monk's stomach. Expecting him to double over in pain he was not ready to dodge the sutra-covered hand that connected to his left rib cage. With a strangled yell he jumped/fell backwards to avoid another attack. He looked down to see that the area that the monk had hit had blasted through his fire rat robe and badly burned his side. Breathing heavily and clutching at the bleeding wound he cursed.

"Damn you Miroku! Sango should have let Sesshomaru finish you off earlier."

The monk stood, breathing ragged from Inuyasha's punch, and sneered at his former friend.

"You're pathetic Inuyasha. You think that your half demon abilities are up to par with my spiritual ones? Ha! My sacred sutras will do far more damage to you than your fists will do to me and you would not use Tetsaiga so close to the village," the monk spat with such a malicious tone that Inuyasha growled in response.

"I should have the evil in you before you hurt Sango the first time. But have no fear; I will not make the same mistake again. You will not speak to Sango nor see her ever again. I shall make sure of that."

The two circled each other in a deadly dance of war. One of them would not make it out of this situation alive and Inuyasha only hoped that Sango would not be too terribly upset that he killed the bastard.

Ignoring the bloody wound at his side Inuyasha drew forth the Tetsaiga and brandished it against the monk's staff as he swung it rapidly forward.

"You wouldn't dare use the windscar so close to the village," Miroku smirked.

"I don't need my windscar to beat a bastard like you!" Inuyasha yelled as he flashed forward and swung Tetsaiga in a quick horizontal slash at the monk who just barely defended with his staff.

Inuyasha didn't miss the slight crack that formed as the force of Tetsaiga's swing hit Miroku's staff. He smirked as he redoubled his effort and increased the speed of his attacks; the monk was going to pay for what he'd done to his sister. He was forced to jump back as the monk threw another sutra at him and thus ceased his advance.

Miroku was breathing hard from defending against the force of Inuyasha's attack but the throwing of his sutras did not use much energy so he took out a small roll and began to throw them at Inuyasha mercilessly; the half demon having to use his full speed to avoid being hit by one and thus receiving a bloody burning patch for his troubles. However, the number of sutras the monk was throwing ultimately overcame him and a few hit their target.

When the monk ran out of sutras Inuyasha had bloody patches on his right shoulder, his left leg, and grazed area above his eye. His breath was coming in ragged gasps and the only thing that kept him standing was the anger he felt towards the monk that had betrayed he and the rest of the group.

Miroku laughed maliciously and stepped towards Inuyasha to finish him off.

"Well, well Inuyasha. Who is so high and mighty now? It seems as though I will be able to go reclaim Sango as my bitch after all," the monk said as he neared Inuyasha's staggering form.

Before he could get within five feet of the barely conscious half demon a large boomerang flew out of the darkness and spun towards him in a deadly ark. He blocked with his staff, causing another large crack to form, and turned towards the direction that boomerang had returned to. He was shocked to see Sango standing in her normal kimono with an angry scowl on her face. He saw a flash of white out of the corner of his eye and turned back to see that Inuyasha no longer stood before him but was now at the edge of the clearing behind Sango, Kagome tending to his wounds with a new healing technique he had never seen before, and Sesshomaru standing beside his brother also wearing an angry look.

"This ends now monk," Sesshomaru said with a growl scarcely concealed within his voice.

* * *

**a/n: ooooohhhhhhh... the monk's about to get it now. :D I know, I know, I ended on a cliffie again. But hey, I didn't end on a cliffie last time so be happy. ^.^**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW!!! I LUV YOU REVIEWER GUYS!!!**


	11. The Battle and Memories of Battles Past

**a/n: Well here's chappie 11! I had a few people question a few things about the story line(Sesshomaru having both arms, where's Rin and Jakken, etc.) and I wanted to tell yall that I'm getting there and I will tell you where they are but I'm not quite there in the story yet. :D I did, however, clear up one of the afore mentioned plot gaps in this chappie. My mom's got a craft show today and I'm probly gonna write chappie 12 while I'm there. ON TO THE STORY!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inu... -.- But I do own my own characters that I made up for this story! So HAHAHAH!**

* * *

Chapter 11- The Battle and Memories of Battles Past

'_This is not good,'_ Miroku thought as he looked at the powerful group of people that he'd thoroughly pissed off, _'I could take Kagome and Sango but with both fighting together with Sesshomaru I'm in trouble.'_

He ran his eyes over the group calculatingly. Kagome didn't look like she'd be in the fight due to her position over Inuyasha behind Sango and Sesshomaru. Not that she'd have been much a problem anyway; she was always the weakest of the group. Sango, on the other hand, had always been a strong fighter and she would pose quite a challenge. However, she'd apparently just given birth and was having some kind of memory loss that affected her fighting abilities. He was fairly sure that he could take Sango out without much of a problem. Sesshomaru would be the true challenge.

'_I need to take Sango down first. Then he'll be too angry to control his inner demon and once its taken over my sacred sutras will be even more affective,'_ Miroku thought cruelly.

He was unprepared for Sesshomaru's cold statement to Sango.

"Stay out of this Sango. Protect Inuyasha and Kagome but do not interfere. The monk is mine."

He smirked as he thought that the odds had just tipped in his favor. The stupid arrogant demon; he'd just sealed his fate.

"Come then demon. I'll give you the same treatment I gave your pathetic half demon brother," Miroku yelled maliciously.

He smirked when Sesshomaru's body tensed in anger. Miroku knew just what buttons to push on people and the demon lord was no different. _'Time for some payback.'_

"Did I hit a soft spot _Lord_ Sesshomaru? Hmm… It seems that your mating a human wench has weakened you greatly, oh powerful lord of the west," the monk taunted.

He was rewarded with a feral snarl coming from the Lord. It seemed that Sango was he greatest weakness after all.

'Then I shall target that weakness,' the monk thought as his eyes flashed to the demon slayer that had dropped her guard slightly as she moved closer to the wounded half demon and priestess. If she'd given herself to the demon lord then she was no longer worth his time. A pity.

* * *

Sesshomaru growled as he saw the monk's eyes move towards his mate and look at her maliciously. He knew exactly what the monk was planning and positioned himself more defensively in front of Sango and the others. His mate had not planned for a fight but when she'd sensed that Inuyasha and the monk were fighting she refused to be left alone in the tent with Kaede and Kohaku. Without a second thought she'd handed her pup to the old priestess, grabbed her Hiraikotsu, and left the tent at a dead run.

He had immediately followed with Kagome close behind him using the power she'd gained from absorbing the sacred jewel to enhance her speed. She was not nearly as fast as he was but her speed was admirable for a human and faster than that of most low class demons; the priestess had yet to harness her full potential and greater speed and power would come with time. Currently she was using one of her most recently learned healing abilities to jumpstart Inuyasha's healing and help his body heal itself faster.

His mate's augmented speed had allowed her to arrive at the clearing just before he had and without missing a stride she had thrown her Hiraikotsu to intercept the monk before he could finish off her only living brother. Sesshomaru had continued on into the clearing and grabbed Inuyasha before returning to his mate's side to lay his brother down and allow Kagome to start healing him.

His mind immediately flew forward to the present as the monk made his move. Miroku threw himself forward and sideways as he threw three sutras at Sesshomaru. The Lord drew Tokijin and sliced through the sutras as if they were nothing more than flimsy pieces of paper. Moving effortlessly he intercepted the monk before he could get close enough to his mate to become a danger. He sliced Tokijin at the monk who jumped backwards quickly to avoid the blow.

Just as Inuyasha had, Sesshomaru could not use his sword's attacks without fear of hitting his mate or the old priestess' hut where his pup currently resided. He knew that the monk would use that to his advantage; as he had with Inuyasha, but Sesshomaru would much rather crush the bastard with his bare hands than with a Dragon Strike. The only reason Sesshomaru had drawn his sword at all was to destroy the sacred sutras before they could hit him and do the same damage to him as they had to Inuyasha.

He ran forward with his demonic speed and continued his attack, catching the monk off guard. Miroku was barely able to block with his staff and was unprepared for Sesshomaru to swing with his left fist and hit the monk hard in the stomach.

'_When the hell did he get his arm back and how did I not notice before now?'_ the monk thought as he pushed Sesshomaru away with his staff and coughed up a small amount of blood, _'That's his real arm too. How did that happen?'_

* * *

Sango stood on the sidelines watching the fight quite annoyed that her mate had refused to let her fight. She understood why, she was well aware of how much of her normal strength she still lacked at this point, but she hated watching her mate battle and knowing that she could not help. She would not enter the fight against his will unless his life was on the line, which she severely doubted would happen.

'_But look at what Miroku did to Inuyasha. I know Inuyasha couldn't use Tetsaiga's attacks but Miroku obviously improved in the last five years for him to do this kind of damage to Inuyasha,' _Sango thought dubiously.

She watched as her mate swung his left fist at the monk and connected squarely to the gut. The sight of her mate fighting with his left arm brought forth the memory of how he'd gotten his arm back after Inuyasha had cut it off originally.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**Flashback**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sango was making her way through the remains of the slayer village slowly. She had already tended to the graves of her people, paying particular attention to the more recent grave of her brother who'd died at Naraku's last stand, as she made her way towards the dusty remains of the slayer's library.

Recently she and Sesshomaru had discovered their love for each other and were to wed and mate soon. She had convinced him, after a long verbal battle, to allow her to return to her village alone one last time before their wedding. She had not told him the reason and had been very relieved that he had not questioned her extensively.

Entering the old library she was relieved to see that it had suffered little damage in Naraku's initial attack on her village and the only thing that was covering the books was a thick layer of dust and age. Picking her way through the shelves of books on demonic magic and sorcery she finally came across the book she'd been looking for. It was an ancient book bound by some kind of demon's skin that she had never come across before except on this particular tome. She'd found this book once when she was a child and had read it simply because she'd been striving to prove herself to her father amongst the many male potential demon slayers and had set herself to reading every book in the library to improve her skills.

It had not been until her involvement with Sesshomaru that she had remembered the book and its writings and sought it out to refresh her memory on it and see if it pertained to their situation, as she was fairly sure it did.

Opening the strange cover she skimmed through until she found the part that she'd remembered. Rereading the passage she was pleased to see that it contained exactly what she needed.

'Boy is Sesshomaru going to be shocked," Sango thought excitedly as she shut the book and headed back towards the hut that she currently resided in with Kirara.

It was getting dark so she decided that she would spend the night in her old village and go over the book to make sure that she'd be ready to perform the ritual when she saw her love next.

**~~~~The Next Day~~~~**

When she and Kirara had arrived at Kaede's village she was greeted by Sesshomaru who swept her off of the fire cat before her feet touched the ground. She laughed before he pulled her into a gentle kiss.

"I missed you my love," Sesshomaru said quietly as he looked her over to make sure nothing had happened while she was away.

"And I you, Sesshomaru. Come though, I have something important to show you," Sango said as she grabbed his clawed right hand and led him back towards the village.

They entered the small hut that Inuyasha had built for Sango after Miroku had left and she and Sesshomaru had been living in since they'd realized their love for each other not long ago. Sitting, she pulled Sesshomaru down beside her and then moved to his left side.

"Now Sesshomaru I want you to promise me that you're not going to freak out no matter what I do, and you're not going to try and stop me. Promise?" Sango said as she looked pleadingly into his golden eyes.

Sesshomaru stared back at her skeptically but nodded; "I promise Sango but what…" he was cut off by Sango who lightly scolded him.

"You'll see now won't you? Now remember, you promised," Sango said as she pulled up the long sleeve that covered what was left of his left arm, "This may hurt a little but bear with me my love."

She smoothly pulled out a small knife from her kimono and cut a thin line across the base of the stub of his arm before cutting a larger and deeper line across her own palm. Sesshomaru began to try to stop her from cutting herself but halted as he remembered his promise.

'_What is this woman up to?'_ he thought as he watched her intently.

Sango placed her bleeding left palm to the bloody spot on his arm and began reciting the incantation that she had memorized from the book the night before. It had said that if a human truly loved a demon that they could sacrifice their own blood and recite the incantation to restore a limb that had been lost in battle, but only if their love was pure and true. It had also said that the human would suffer some kind of after-effect, be it positive or negative, but she was willing to deal with whatever may happen if she could only give Sesshomaru his arm back.

The demon himself watched with amazement as his arm reformed before his eyes exactly as it had been before Inuyasha had hacked it off in their first battle. When it was complete Sango stopped incanting and watched wearily as Sesshomaru flexed his newly formed arm in amazement. He looked up and Sango in awe, his eyes asking how she'd done it.

"I'm a demon slayer my love, we have many tricks up our sleeves," she said with a smile before passing out from exhaustion.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**End Flashback--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Sango smiled at that pleasant memory and nearly laughed at the amazement that her mate had shown when she'd given him his arm back. She had never again seen such a shocked look on her mate's face and the three days she'd spent unconscious afterwards had been more than worth it. Of course the other side effect had not been entirely unwanted either. Having some of Sesshomaru's blood merge with hers and becoming just as strong and fast as a demon had come in handy more than once.

Her mind was drawn back to the battle as her mate's aura shot dangerously high and he let out a loud roar. She looked up to see that the monk had thrown his staff at her, deadly end first, and there was no time to dodge or deflect the weapon with Hiraikotsu.

'_Shit!' _she thought as she squeezed her eyes shut and braced her body for the inevitable pain.

* * *

**a/n: Oh no! Cliffie AGAIN! Tehee ^.^ What's to come? You shall see. Oh, if the flashback didn't make since to anyone just let me know and I'll try to clarify. More background info on the story to come as well!!!**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW!!!**


	12. The Blood Lust

**a/n: Well I'm going to up the rating on this story to M just to be safe. No lemons or stuff like that it's just that my battle scenes are kinda gory. ^~^ Oh ya, while I'm at it I might as well warn yall all that this chappie is kinda gory. ^.^ ON TO THE CHAPPY!!!**

* * *

Chapter 12- The Blood Lust

Slowly Sango cracked her eyes open after a few moments of feeling no pain. Not understanding why the monk's staff hadn't impaled her, she lowered her arms from their position in front of her face to see a mass of silver hair. Horrified she looked down to see the usually pristine white kimono that her mate wore covered in crimson blood.

"Sesshomaru!" she yelled as she dropped her Hiraikotsu and moved to look at his face.

Upon moving in front of him she saw that Miroku's staff had run her mate through the side. Blood gushed from the wound and had already begun to form a puddle on the ground. Desperation washed over her as she tried to think of what to do. She looked up at Sesshomaru's face and was shocked beyond belief.

His usual calm countenance had taken on a feral air, the likes of which she had never seen before on his face. The purple stripes on his cheeks had become jagged hashed remains of the once smooth stripes. His eyes were completely blood red and not a trace of their normal gold remained. What truly frightened her was the way that his features seemed to be pushing to elongate and transform into their true dog demon form. Sesshomaru seemed to be fighting the transformation but the blood loss he was suffering due to the monk's staff.

"Sesshomaru?" she questioned as she stood directly in front of him.

His eyes were an unfocused red haze and she wasn't sure if he could even hear her. Her attention was so solely focused on her nearly transformed mate that she was unprepared for the monk to grab her from behind and slide a knife quickly against her throat. Her former question of whether or not her mate was conscious was promptly answered as his bloody eyes quickly focused on the monk that held her and a roar, so frightening that her own blood nearly froze, ripped forth from his throat.

She tried to free herself from the monk's hold but as soon as she began to twist her body Miroku pushed the knife so tight to her neck that she began to bleed slightly. Freezing, her eyes flew to Sesshomaru who'd moved forward slightly and let out another snarl.

She'd heard stories from her father about what happened when a demon that was nearly transformed smelt their mate's blood spilt. Her father had described an animal that no longer held any self-control or rational and solely sought the blood of their enemy. Their blood lust only appeased when the body of the enemy lay in bloody pieces scattered across the ground. She had seen her mate's anger and had witnessed him fight in his true form before, but the image that her father had painted scared her more than even Naraku had before he had finally been destroyed.

She was eyeing her mate fearfully until he suddenly disappeared from her sight. The monk's grip on her tightened and she cried out in pain as the knife dug deeper into her neck and drew enough blood for it to run down her neck in red rivulets. Without warning the monk's arm dropped, Miroku screamed loudly, and a spray of blood flew from the area his arm had previously resided and onto Sango's face. As soon as the knife was clear from her neck she threw her body forward to free herself from the monk's grasp. From her position on the ground she turned, with one hand pressed to her neck to stop the bleeding, to see the monk clutching at the bloody stump that Sesshomaru had just caused by slicing off his arm.

At some point Sesshomaru had yanked the monk's staff from his stomach and had thrown the blood covered weapon to the ground a short distance away from where the monk had held her in his grasp. Miroku tried to get to the discarded item but was unable to as Sesshomaru was attacking so rapidly he could only just dodge the random attacks. Sesshomaru was no longer attacking calculatingly and his movements had become animalistic and sloppy.

It pained her to see what her mate had been reduced to because of her. She pulled herself to her feet and stood just as Miroku was able to duck to avoid Sesshomaru's claws and roll to grab his staff. She swayed slightly, blood leaking from between her fingers as the battle raged on. Sesshomaru had received a few wounds from Miroku's staff and sutras after his transformation into the animalistic state, and the monk had lost an arm and had two or three places that Sesshomaru had sliced with his claws.

All in all both fighters had beaten each other to bloody pulps, neither looking like they cared who won any more; Miroku having realized that he would die here and wanting to take the demon who'd ended his life down with him, Sesshomaru being overcome by the animalistic nature of his inner demon and his rational thoughts no longer ruling his actions. Sango feared that the monk would be able to take her mate down in desperation while Sesshomaru was not himself.

The thought of her mate falling before the monk that had broken her heart drove Sango to action. With blood still running freely from her neck she pushed her body forward and ran towards the battle. She had sworn that she wouldn't enter the battle unless his life was in danger and now was that time. Drawing the small katana from her side she blocked a swing of Miroku's staff from hitting Sesshomaru's blind spot. Weakly pushing the staff away she stumbled into a protective position in front of Sesshomaru's bloody form.

"L..Leave him a..alone…" she said weakly as she raised her katana in front of her body.

Miroku eyed her wearily before shifting his eyes to the demon behind her. She hadn't been prepared for Sesshomaru to push her aside violently to get to the monk. She flew sideways a good distance due to the strength of Sesshomaru's shove before hitting her head on a rock on the ground with a loud crack. The last thing she saw before her vision blackened was Sesshomaru slicing through the monk's body with his elongated claws.

Kagome had just finished healing Inuyasha and had turned to watch the fight when Miroku had grabbed Sango and put a knife to her throat. She had grabbed her quiver and bow and was about to go help Sango when Inuyasha's hand grasped her wrist tightly.

"Don't Kagome," Inuyasha said weakly, "This is Sesshomaru's fight. Please stay by my side."

She had nodded and settled herself beside him to watch the rest of the battle. She had watched in amazement and horror as Sesshomaru's movements became wild and sloppy. She couldn't understand why until his face came into her view and she saw how feral his features had become. She gasped in shock; never before had she seen her brother-in-law look so terrifying.

She could only watch as Sango threw herself into the battle. Once again she tried to move forward to help but Inuyasha grabbed her arm once more.

"Inuyasha, I have to help them," Kagome said as she looked back at her injured mate.

"I know Kagome but you're not doing it alone," he said as he pulled himself up using her arm for support.

She wanted to tell him not to but she knew that he would anyway and that she would need his help to calm Sesshomaru down. Just finishing helping Inuyasha stand, she turned just in time to see Sesshomaru shove Sango violently to the side and slice through Miroku's chest with his claws. Her eyes, however, were locked on Sango's falling form and she saw her best friend bash her head on the rock that jutted out from the grass of the clearing floor.

"NO! SANGO!" she cried as she began running towards her friend.

Time seemed to slow as she neared Sango's fallen form; blood pooling around the rock from her neck as well as the newly formed head wound. Kagome fell to her friend's side yelling her name once again. She heard Inuyasha approach behind her and she yelled for him to help move Sango into flat position on the ground so that she could heal her injuries.

Inuyasha did so before turning back to his brother to see that he was about to slice into the fallen monk yet again. He didn't know what to do. Never before had he seen his brother in such an uncontrolled fury but he had to try something.

"Sesshomaru! What the hell are you doing? Snap out of it!" Inuyasha yelled causing his brother to halt mid-swing.

'_Yes! I'm getting through to him,'_ Inuyasha thought.

He was discouraged to see Sesshomaru turn away from him and back towards the bloody corpse of the monk.

"Look! Look what you did to Sango! Look what you did to your mate Sesshomaru!" Inuyasha yelled in desperation.

'_If that doesn't snap him out of it then I don't know what I'm going to do,'_ he thought, _'Come on Sesshomaru. Come back to us.'_

Sesshomaru found himself in a very dark place. The fog that seemed to surround him had an eerie red tint to it. He tried to remember how he'd gotten into this place but the only thing he could remember was the monk's staff flying towards Sango and he moving as quickly as he could to intercept it.

'_That must have been it, the monk's staff must have hit me in a vital spot and my inner demon took over. This is my inner demon's realm. That means that he has taken over,' _Sesshomaru thought as he looked around wearily.

"How long have I been here?" he asked the murky darkness.

He received no reply and decided that he should wait for a few moments to regain his strength before trying to reclaim his body. He sat for a few moments before he head a voice cry out from somewhere beyond the darkness.

'_**NO! SANGO!' **_

That voice. It was the priestess Kagome. What was she screaming about?

'_**SANGO!'**_

'_She's yelling Sango's name. What has happened? Where is she?'_ Sesshomaru thought fearfully as he tried to pinpoint where the priestess' voice had come from.

What was happening? What was his inner demon doing while he was trapped in this red fog covered world? Suddenly Inuyasha's voice cut through the darkness harshly.

'_**Sesshomaru! What the hell are you doing? Snap out of it!'**_

What? What was his body doing? He must know. Pushing against the restraints that held him within his own mind. An invisible shield thrust him back with an almost electric shock.

"Damn," he cursed, "I must find out what has happened."

He stood again but knew that he had not yet regained enough strength to overcome his demon's hold on his body.

'_**Look! Look what you did to Sango! Look what you did to your mate Sesshomaru!' **_Inuyasha's voice once again rang through his mind.

"WHAT?!" he roared "What have you done to MY Sango demon?!"

His anger at his own inner demon gave him power as he imagined what his out of control body could have done to his mate. He slammed his fist repeatedly against the barrier before his anger shattered it and he was able to regain control.

Looking around he saw that the monk lay in a bloody pile on the ground and that his own body and claws were caked with the monk's blood as well as his own. Turning, he saw his mate lying in a small pool of blood a few yards away. He was at her side in an instant, unheeding of his own wounds, and pulled her limp form into his arms.

'_What have I done…'_ He thought in despair, _'What have I done?'_

* * *

**a/n: ^.^ hehe. Well there you go. Chappie 12. Nice and action packed. A little gorey but you know that Sesshomaru would readily and easily do that if someone threatened his mate that way :D**

**READ AND REVIEW!!! PLEASE!!! **


	13. Beauty and The Beast

**a/n: Hey yall!!! I've got chappie 13 and 14 written so whenever I finish here I'm gonna go back and type chappie 14 and get it posted. Also, I just want to let yall know that Sesshy and Sango are gonna be in the hot springs during this chappie but it does not talk about or even relatively mention anything explicit I just thought I'd let yall know. ^.^ ON TO THE CHAPPIE!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: Texascowgirl-13 don't own Inu, but I WISH I did :D**

* * *

Chapter 13- Beauty and The Beast

Sango awoke with a throbbing headache. Slowly moving one hand to her head, her fingers were met with bandages that covered the aching wound.

'_What hit me?'_ she thought as she slowly sat up.

"Ow…"

"Sango," a voice said from her side.

She opened her eyes to see Sesshomaru sitting beside her still clothed in the blood soaked clothes that he'd had on during the battle. She very quickly became aware of what had hit her at the sight of her blood-covered mate. Tears welled in her eyes as she remembered what kind of monster he had become because she wasn't paying attention to the battle and had allowed herself to get caught. Throwing herself at her mate she buried her face in his bloody kimono to try to hide her tears.

Sesshomaru was startled for a moment before relaxing and wrapping his arms around his mate. He had thought that she would hate him now for what he had done to her while his demon was in control, for becoming a raging monster, but she had taken one look at him and burst into tears before throwing herself into his arms. His mate sure was unpredictable.

'_Why is she crying?' _he thought, _'Have I scared her that badly?'_

After a moment she pulled away from his chest and the wind filled his senses with the scent of her tears. Her eyes were red and slightly puffy, her cheeks were wet with tears, and the large bandage that was wrapped around her head made her hair stick out at an odd angle, but he could not help but think he had never seen anything so beautiful.

She raised a slender hand to his face and gently ran her fingers along the purple stripes on his cheeks. So he was right, she was thinking of his transformation. What would she do now that he had hurt her? Would she leave him and take their pup? With Sango he could never tell what she would do next; he'd just have to wait and see.

"Sesshomaru…"

'_Here it comes,'_ he thought, inwardly wincing.

"I…I'm sorry," she said as a single tear made its way down her right cheek.

'_What?' _he thought, bewildered, _'Out of all the things she could have said I would not have thought that would be it.'_

"What could you possibly be sorry for Sango? It was I who hurt you because I could not control myself."

Her brown eyes hardened and flashed angrily for a moment, surprising him. He was completely shocked when she reared back and punched him squarely in the arm.

"Sango! What in the…"

"Don't you dare blame yourself for this!_I_was the reason for all of this!_I_ lost my memories,_ I_ was the reason Miroku attacked,_ I_ wasn't paying attention to the battle, and_ I _caused you to transform into that…that…beast."

By now the angry tears had stopped and she was left with only red eyes and tearstains. The guilt he saw in her brown eyes made Sesshomaru's heart tighten.

'_How can she blame herself for this?'_ he thought in amazement, _'She truly is an incredible woman.'_

"Now Sango. None of that is your fault. None of it!" He said as he pulled her against him once more.

They stayed in silence that way for a while and Sesshomaru was about to move her so that she would be able to sleep in a more comfortable position when she lifted her head and looked up into his golden eyes.

"Sesshomaru, I need to go take a bath," she said in a quiet voice.

"Of course my love."

Carefully he took her in his arms and gathered the needed materials before quickly running them to the nearby hot springs. He set her down and removed his kimono as she did the same. When they'd both entered the water he made his way over to her and softly began to wash and massage her back in an attempt to relax her, but the soft touch against the scar on her back caused her to tense immediately.

He paused and waited for her body to relax like it usually did after he touched her scar but when it didn't he began to worry. Had he done something wrong? It then occurred to him that her memory of receiving the scar had been burned away by Takusi's poison.

'_Crap,'_ he thought as she turned towards him with a pain filled and questioning expression.

"Sesshomaru…What..? How..?"

He sighed inwardly. She had told him how she had received the scar when they had first mated. It pained her then to remember how Naraku had forced her brother to slaughter her family and stab her in the back with his scythe, and that was after she had finally accepted her families' death. The thought made him wince as he knew that the emotional pain of the memories would be coupled by the physical pain of the burnt memories reforming as soon as he told her.

"Please Sesshomaru. I want to know what caused me to become so scarred and ugly," Sango begged as her eyes fell to the water.

A small growl escaped his now clenched jaw. He absolutely hated when she told him things like that. She had told him that she was sorry for being "damaged goods"; a phrase she had learned from Kagome, and one that he greatly resented. Apparently she still thought the same way even without the memory of how she had received the scar.

"You are _NOT_ scarred and ugly Sango. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in all of my demonic years," Sesshomaru said seriously, "Never, NEVER, say such things about yourself."

Her eyes softened and a sad smile appeared on her delicate features, the heat of the spring making a halo of light in the water vapor around her head and making her beauty even more palpable.

"Sesshomaru…" she said softly, voice trailing off at the end of his name.

He pulled her to him gently and softly kissed her lips. Gods did he love her. Her beauty astounded him, and not just her physical beauty but also the beauty of her soul. She was the most caring, sweet, understanding, and she always put her friends and family above herself.

"Come Sango. It's getting late and you should rest so that your demon blood will be able to heal you," he said releasing her from his arms.

As she exited the water, he appraised her beauty for a moment before exiting to get dressed as well.

Her scars prove her strength, her modesty proves her beauty, and her love proves her devotion. She was an amazingly beautiful woman in every way and he loved everything about her; scars and all.

"Ready Sango?"

"Yes my love. Let's go," she said as she took his hand and they began to walk back towards the village.

'_I'm so lucky to have such a wonderful mate to love,'_ they both thought simultaneously as they entered the hut to get Kohaku and bed down for the night.

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**a/n: Are yall happy now?!?!? I finally didn't end in a cliffie!!! LOL ^.^ Oh ya, there wasn't really any bad stuff at the hot springs, just like I said, but there may be more graphic fight scenes to come and maybe some cussing so I'm gonna leave it at M rating just to be safe. I WILL NOT write lemons, I have nothing against people who do, but I'm only 17 and haven't ever done anything like that so I'm not gonna write about it. O.O Well, I'm off to type up chappie 14.... Enjoy!!!**

**You know the routine... READ AND REVIEW PLZ!!!**


	14. The Bubbly Day

**a/n: Hey yall. Here's chappie 14. It's late(like 12:22am) but I still got it updated today, kinda -.- Anyway, this is just a good ole holesome chappie that explains a little bit about some of the characters that have been missing so far. Not much action, in fact its pretty not actiony, but its got some good need to know info. :D Neways, ON TO THE STORY!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: I'm not rich. Cuz if I was I'd buy Inuyasha and put Sesshy with Sango!!! .**

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Chapter 14- The Bubbly Day

Sango awoke the next day to find Sesshomaru nowhere in sight. She sat up just as Kagome entered the hut with Kohaku in her arms so she asked the young priestess where her mate had gone.

"Oh, he and Inuyasha went off together to do something. I'm sure they're fine," Kagome said with a caring smile as she handed Sango her baby.

With a nod of acknowledgement to Kagome, Sango quickly fed Kohaku and began to rock him gently in her arms as she silently watched Kagome mix some herbs.

'_They're planning what Sesshomaru is going to do when he catches up to Takusi,' _Sango thought as her mind wandered, _'He can't just kill him because he wants to get some of his poison so that I can get my memories back less painfully.'_

She sighed at the thought that her mate would have to go out of his way to keep the bastard fox demon alive long enough to get the poison that was the key to her memories.

'_And I know he's not going to let me go with him,'_ she thought annoyedly, _'I hate being left behind but I know I can't leave Kohaku and I'm sure as hell not taking him anywhere near that bastard.'_

Thinking of the fox demon made her aura flare in anger. She fervently wished that she could castrate the bastard before Sesshomaru killed him but she knew she'd never get the chance; but ohhhhh how she wanted to.

She didn't notice that her aura had started fluctuating wildly and continued on with her violent thoughts on how she'd like to torture Takusi until Kagome's voice interrupted them.

"Ummm… Sango? Are you ok?"

She looked up at Kagome and stared at her blankly for a moment before blinking slowly twice.

"Yes. Why Kagome? Is something wrong?" Sango asked with a quick look around the room.

Kagome opened her mouth to respond when Sesshomaru and Inuyasha both came bursting into the hut; hands on their swords, golden eyes sweeping the hut intently.

"What the hell's going on Sango? Why is your aura flaring so much? There isn't anybody here!" Inuyasha yelled as he took his hand from Tetsaiga's hilt.

She looked at both of them for a moment before bursting into hysterical laughter. Kohaku, who had awoken when his father and uncle had noisily entered the hut, giggled in adorable baby laughter joining his mother's less controlled giggle fit. Sesshomaru lowered his hand from the hilt of Tokijin and smiled slightly at the spectacle of his mate and in front of him. Her rolling with laughter had mussed her hair, causing the bandage to loosen from her already healed wound and tangle in her long brown locks. Her kimono was wrinkled and the only thing that held her together at all was Kohaku's tiny form laughing in her arms.

After a few moments she finally got her laughter controlled enough to speak and chose to ignore Inuyasha as she held her baby aloft with a smile.

"Are you happy Kohaku? Yes you are, my precious baby," Sango cooed lovingly.

She looked up at the people around her to find Inuyasha with a slightly annoyed look on his face but a soft one in his eyes, Kagome smiling brilliantly with both hands clutched in front of her chest and an "Aww. So cute!" expression, and lastly her eyes fell upon her mate, their eyes locking.

* * *

He stood a step away from her, his golden eyes intently watching her as she laughed and cuddled their pup lovingly. It had been awhile since she had laughed so sincerely and it almost made him forget why he and Inuyasha had rushed back to the hut so quickly.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**Flashback**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two dog demon brothers had been sitting in front of the Goshinboku tree planning how to find and subdue Takusi long enough to get a large enough sample of his poison to take to a witch that Sesshomaru knew of, residing in the mountains close by.

They were about halfway through the discussion of one of their more promising plans when Sesshomaru's head had whipped up and he looked intently towards the village. He had looked back at Inuyasha, receiving a wide-eyed look similar to his own, before bolting towards the hut with a hand on Tokijin. Both brothers made it to the hut one right after the other; each worried about their mates that were in the hut with Sango's aura rising violently and Kagome's being slightly worried, only to find the two women staring at each other blankly with no one else anywhere near the hut.

**(a/n: Short, I know, but they weren't away from the girls that long anyway. It just kinda tells you what they were up to :D)**

---------------------------------------------**-------------------------------------------------End Flashback----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Seeing that Sango had calmed herself Sesshomaru repeated Inuyasha's former question in a more sedate and gentle manner.

"What happened Sango? Why was your aura flaring as if you were doing battle?"

Sango looked up from Kohaku, who she'd taken to bouncing on her lap, and told her three curious friends what she'd been thinking about. Inuyasha and Kagome laughed and breathed a sigh of relief; at least she was acting like her old self again, even if she had yet to remember who she was. Sesshomaru, however, merely smirked at his mate's vicious thoughts towards the fox demon.

'_That's my mate,'_ he thought proudly, _'Strong, and incredibly vicious and ruthless when someone threatens our pup.'_

The thought of his pup being threatened, however, brought back to mind the reason he and Inuyasha had been away from the hut in the first place. He would leave as soon as possible to find the worthless fox demon and he needed to find a safe place to stay for Sango and Kohaku.

"Sango we must speak of your living arrangements while I am gone," Sesshomaru said as the group settled down around the small fire that Kagome was cooking over.

She simply looked up and him and nodded gravely. He knew that she understood why he must leave her behind, and as loathe as he was to do so, he knew that she could not accompany him on this particular journey. She was thinking the same thing herself only moments before.

"You cannot stay here. This village attracts too many demon attacks with only Inuyasha and Kagome for your protection. That is not acceptable," he said with a serious expression, "Instead, I would like you to stay with Rin and her mate for awhile. Shippo has become a strong warrior, and Jaken, Ah-Uhn, and Kirara are there as well to provide extra protection."

Sango thought for a moment. Those names all sounded incredibly familiar and she was sure that Shippo had been the young fox demon that had been standing beside Inuyasha at her wedding. Focusing on the young fox she was able to unlock the memories with minimal pain. It only felt like a knife was being drilled into her brain now instead of a katana.

Her memories of Rin were much easier to reestablish seeing as Rin was an integral part of Sesshomaru's life for so long that Sango had been able to retain some of her memories and protect them from the burning. After a little focus and a little stabbing pain she could remember everything about the two people, including their wedding and their newly built home.

Along with memories of Rin came the memories of Sesshomaru's servants and it hadn't hurt at all to recall their minimal role in her life. Kirara was a similar situation; though the recovery was much more painful since she'd had memories of Kirara since she was a child.

As her memories of the whole group cleared Sango was surprised. She had not thought that he would take her to stay with Rin and Shippo of all people. It had been some time since she'd sent Kirara to stay with Rin and help her out around the house while Shippo, Jaken, and Ah-Uhn were working on building the various extensions to their own mini-mansion and Sango was quite looking forward to seeing the young couple again.

'_After all, I did promise Rin that I would come see her after the baby was born,'_ Sango thought with a smile.

"Is that an acceptable residence Sango? If not I could always send you to live with old Lady Sumaki that specializes in impenetrable barriers," Sesshomaru asked, only half joking about the second part; the possibility had crossed his mind more than once.

"No! No! I'd love to stay with Rin and Shippo, and I'm sure she's just dying to see Kohaku. I only wish that you'd be able to stay and visit for a little while before heading out on your journey," Sango said as she looked at her mate imploringly.

"We shall see Sango. I will not drop you on their doorstep and flee immediately afterwards though," he said with a sarcastic smirk, "We leave tomorrow morning so you should get some sleep Sango."

Nodding and smiling she made her way over to the matt on the floor as Kagome and Inuyasha quietly made their exit. She had settled down with Kohaku by her side and fell asleep almost instantly.

'That's five more sets of memories that she's had to force herself to remember the hard way. I will not stand by and let her suffer through any more of them. I _WILL_ find that bastard and I _WILL_ kill him,' he thought angrily before calming himself and moving over to lay down beside his mate and get some well deserved rest.

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**a/n: That's about it. Next chappie you'll actually get to see Rin and Shippo, that is if Sango and Sesshy make it there without something happening first! AAAHAHAHAHAH!!! You'll just have to wait and see. ^.^**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW! YOU KNOW I LUV YOU GUYZ!!!**


	15. The Bear Demons

**a/n: Hey yall... Sorry it's been such a long time but I've had lots to do and then my internet went down so I'm finally getting back on now. I should be able to update more frequently soon cuz school's gonna be out friday and I'll try to update nearly everyday but yall know how it is ^.^ Well ON TO THE STORY...**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Inuyasha or any of it's characters. I do, however, on this story so hands off!.**

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Chapter 15- The Bear Demons

The journey to Rin and Shippo's village had not taken long. Sango had convinced Sesshomaru that she needed to walk for a ways to stretch her legs or they would have already been there. A few minor demons had tried to attack them but had been so quickly dispatched by Sesshomaru that Sango was getting bored.

They were nearing the land that the young couple owned when suddenly a large group of bear demons, all with fairly large amounts of demonic aura, surrounded the small traveling family. Of course being bear demons, an incredibly stupid species that relied solely on strength to survive, they had no idea just whose family they were confronting and just how powerful the silver haired demon that they were threatening was.

"You! Demon. Move aside and we shall let you live. However, the woman will be quite useful before we devour her and the pup shall serve as my snack before our little activities," the bear demon leader roared from his place, a good 300 yards from Sesshomaru.

He couldn't have said a stupider thing. Sango, who was livid herself, looked to her mate to see that he was incredibly angry but had controlled himself enough that no red was seen in his golden eyes. That didn't mean, however, that the stupid bear demon was going to escape his wrath. On the contrary, the demon had just sealed his fate in a most painful way.

In a flash her mate had disappeared from her side to reappear in front of the demon and slice Tokijin through his stomach. The wound would not kill him instantly but during the time it took for the gaping wound in his stomach to bleed him to death he would have to witness the slaughter of his pack and suffer in the knowledge that he had lead to their destruction by arrogantly threatening the Lord of the West's family.

So as the bear demon leader collapsed in a pool of his own blood Sesshomaru began to slaughter the remaining demons with rapid and vicious precision. Sango had shifted Kohaku in his sling and moved Hiraikotsu into an easy to throw position in her right hand just in case any of the demons got to close.

She watched in enjoyment as her mate slaughtered the bears that had threatened her family. She was almost caught off guard as a bear demon suddenly appeared behind her and swung his long blunt claws in a deadly ark at her back. Moving her weapon to block, she was caught off balance and pushed to the ground. The bear had immediately thrown itself at her prone form and she had moved Hiraikotsu on top of herself and the baby to hold the demon off long enough for Sesshomaru to help her.

Sango pulled Kohaku's sling to the ground on her left side and moved both arms to support her weapon that was currently the only thing that kept the bear's snapping jaws from locking onto her or her babe.

"Sesshomaru!" she yelled in desperation; she wouldn't be able to hold the bear off for much longer and her muscles were already aching from the strain.

Out of the corner of her eye Sango saw a flash of light brown and black before the weight of the bear was suddenly lifted off of Hiraikotsu and she was able to push the heavy weapon off of her sore body. Gathering Kohaku into her arms she sat up to see the demon that had been attacking her being dispatched by a tall, slender fox demon with auburn hair and shining emerald eyes. The fox whipped his bloody sword off on the now deceased bear's hide before sheathing it and turning back to her battered form that still resided on the ground.

"Shippo!" Sango yelled happily, "I'm so glad to see you!"

"Sango are you ok?" the young fox asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, I'm fine, just a little bruised but that'll go away in a few hours," she said as he helped her up.

Sesshomaru suddenly appeared by her side and looked her over while taking a long sniff of the air around her to make sure that she wasn't bleeding before turning back to Shippo.

"Shippo," Sesshomaru said with a nod towards his son-in-law, "Thank you for protecting Sango while I was engaged with the other demons.

Sango looked at her mate to see that he had a bloody bite mark in his left shoulder and a small gash on the right side of his face.

"Sesshomaru! Your hurt! Why didn't you tell me?" Sango half yelled as she quickly moved to inspect the wounds; as expected, they were already healing but she still wished he would tell her when he gets hurt.

"It's nothing Sango. As you can see the wound is already healing. I simply underestimated the number of bear demons they had in reserve in the forest."

She looked up at him and studied his face a moment before looking away with an annoyed expression and mumbling something about arrogant men and thinking they're invincible.

"We've been having a few problems with the bear demon's recently," Shippo said as he looked at his father-in-law and the woman he considered a second mother, "I had my suspicions about old Thoross over there rallying an army but he's been keeping out of sight until now. Leave it to you two to draw out the hole army in one meeting."

Shippo smiled as he looked at his mother and noticed for the first time that she was no longer pregnant but now held a tiny infant in her arms. His eyes widened and his expression became one of total wonder as he moved closer to Sango to see the little pup that looked up at him with wide golden eyes.

"It's ok Shippo. If Kohaku felt threatened by you then he'd have been crying already," Sango assured gently.

"He's so tiny," Shippo said as he placed one of his large fingers into Kohaku's tiny hand and watched in awe as the pup grabbed his finger, stuck it into his tiny mouth, and promptly began to chew on it with his little fangs.

All three adults smiled at the babe as he moved Shippo's fingers around his mouth to position it so he could bite it with his fangs.

"Ouch!" Shippo yelled as he pulled his hand back to find a small bloody spot on his finger, "You little blood sucker!"

Kohaku responded by giggling happily and flashing his tiny fangs at Shippo with a smile. Sesshomaru smiled at his little son's actions, it was obvious whose son he was. Shippo removed his finger from his mouth and smiled at his little nephew whose golden eyes were eyeing the finger he'd bitten.

"We'd better head home," Shippo said to his parents, "I left in a hurry when I felt your aura spike and I'm sure Rin is getting worried. She wanted to come but I told her that I'd get here faster by myself."

"Of course. I can't wait to see Rin again. It's been so long," Sango said with a smile as she adjusted Kohaku, "Hold on a minute while I get Hiraikotsu."

She turned to retrieve her weapon but found that Shippo had already grabbed it and hoisted it onto his back easily.

"It never ceases to amaze me the weight of Hiraikotsu and how easily you can lift it Sango," Shippo said as they began to move towards his home.

"It comes from years of practice and training Shippo, I've told you that," Sango said as she shrugged the compliment off with a slight blush; she'd never taken compliments well, even from Sesshomaru.

"You are to modest Sango," Sesshomaru said as he walked alongside his mate, once again looking her over to assure himself that she was unharmed, "many full blooded demon cannot lift your weapon."

Succumbing to a full-blown blush, Sango bent her head so that her bangs would hide the redness of her cheeks. Why all the compliments? Did this happen often and the memory of it had been burned? She doubted it. Sesshomaru had surely seen the blush at Shippo's compliment and knew that it embarrassed her. He had his playful moments and most of the time his playfulness was taken out on her. Shaking her head she sighed; the things she puts up with.

She was brought out of her thoughts as they approached the house and Rin's yell broke through her concentration.

"Mommy! Daddy!"

"Rin!" Sango yelled as she broke away from the group and ran towards the girl who she'd raised after she and Sesshomaru had gotten together and thought of as a daughter.

"Mommy I'm so glad to see you!" Rin yelled as she threw her arms around her mother. Their hug was cut short when Kohaku let out a small cry off annoyance and Rin jerked back with wide eyes. "Mommy, the baby's finally come?

"Yes Rin, you've got a baby brother now. His name's Kohaku," Sango said sweetly.

By then Sesshomaru and Shippo had made it to where the girls were excitedly chatting about little Kohaku. The talking ceased momentarily as Rin noticed Sesshomaru standing nearby and promptly ran over to give him a hug.

"Daddy!" she yelled happily as she gave him a more sedate hug than her mother.

"Rin. I am glad to see you," Sesshomaru said as she released him and stepped back a step.

Rin had truly grown into a lovely woman. Her long brown hair was still loose but no longer had the small pony tail at the top, but instead was styled very similar to Sango's but without the bangs. Her body was now very similar to Sango's but a little less muscular and covered in an orange version of Kikyo's priestess garb. She had trained extensively with both Sango and Kagome while growing up and was now a skilled priestess and demon slayer, though her niche had always been with healing. She was very skilled with a bow and arrow as well as a bow staff, but she could use any weapon if needed and even throw her mother's Hiraikotsu awkwardly.

She had been Kaede's village's healer before she had found love with Shippo and moved to a nearby village where they'd made a sizeable home for themselves; she as their healer, Shippo as their protector. Shippo himself had grown quite a bit from his days of shard hunting with the group and his long, muscular body was tanned and well built. His beautiful auburn hair was still pulled back in its' short and poofy pony tail that he'd had during child hood but his emerald eyes had taken on an air of confidence and maturity that was not seen before.

"Let's go inside Rin. I'm sure Sango and Sesshomaru and tired from their journey," Shippo said as he wrapped one arm around her shoulders and moved to walk back towards their home.

"Oh! Of course how silly of me. Come mommy, daddy, you must be tired and little Kohaku must need taking care of as well," Rin chattered happily as she and Shippo led the way into their home to continue their reunion indoors.

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**a/n: Those stupid bear demon's! They really thought that they could threaten Sango and Kokahu like that and get away with it? Apparently... Idiots. ^.^ But anyways, there's chappie 15. Just a little bit of info on Shippo and Rin. Next time Sesshy gets to tell the two about what's goin on with Sango... dun, dun, dun... but that's not really a big deal anyways so not really a cliffie this chappie. Or last chappie for that matter! Aren't you proad of me!?!**

**READ AND REVIEW PLZZZZZ!!!**


	16. The Bedroom Discussion

**a/n: Hey yall. Here's chappie 16. It's not very actiony and is kinda short but I need it as a set up chapter for chappie 17 where I plan on revealing the story behind the San/Sesshy pairing in this story... So please bear with me, I know it's not very good... Oh! Also, I wanted to clear something up from the last chapter. Shippo's parents(not his biological ones, we all know they died) are actually Kagome and Inuyasha. His in-laws are Sesshy/San even though he thinks of Sango as a second mother. Which means that the son of his father's brother is his nephew, making Kohaku his nephew. But also his wife's father's son is his brother in law... Confusing, I know, but it's less creepy for a fully grown man to think of a little baby as his nephew instead of his brother in law. Or maybe that's just me *.*... Either way, I will refer to Kohaku as Shippo's nephew cuz it doesn't creep me out... ^.^ ON TO THE STORY!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Inuyasha(boring, I know, but I'm runnin out of retarded ideas here people O.O)**

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Chapter 16- The Bedroom Discussion

"Mommy! Daddy! Come look at the new garden!" Rin yelled as she excitedly showed her parents around the manner.

With each step she seemed to bounce lightly with excitement and her whole body radiated happiness at the unexpected appearance of her parents. They had not seen each other in such a long time and she was very eager to show them the new advancements that Shippo had made to their home and catch up on all the new happenings in their lives.

"Rin, what have I told you about calling Sango 'mommy'?" Sesshomaru asked with a slightly disapproving tone.

Rin's smile fell slightly and she sighed before reciting what her father had told her countless times; "Calling Sango mommy makes me sound immature and childish, and as a well respected priestess and adult I should act more mature."

"That is right. You may call her mother if it pleases you but you are no longer a child and you need to act like it," Sesshomaru stated rather coldly.

It had been a long journey thanks to the bear demons, and although his wounds had already healed themselves for the most part he was in need of some time to rest and regain his energy. He felt bad for causing Rin's look of complete happiness to fade but she truly did need to act more like the young woman that she was instead of a hyperactive child.

"Come Rin. Let's show Sesshomaru and Sango to their rooms so that they can rest. I'm sure that they're both tired from their journey and its already well past sundown. We can talk tomorrow," Shippo said sensibly; he had noticed Sesshomaru's snippy mood and knew from past experience that it was best to leave him alone when he was like this.

Rin simply nodded with a smile that seemed much dimmer than before and turned towards the wing with the rooms so that she could show her parents where they were to sleep. She opened one of the doors to a simple room that held the usual sleeping mat and other various furniture and allowed her father to walk past her and into the room. Sango paused at the door and gave Rin a hug.

"It's ok Rin. Your father's just had a long day and is upset about my situation," she paused at the look on Rin's face when she said "my situation" but continued on none the less, "I'll tell you everything you need to know tomorrow. Right now it's getting late and you should go get some rest."

Rin smiled at her mother; her mommy always knew best about these kinds of things, especially when they regarded her father. They both said good night and Shippo wrapped his arm around Rin as they headed off towards their room that was a short ways down the hall.

Sango watched them leave and a small pain in her temple formed as some of the slightly blurry memories of the two seemed to clear. The pain was becoming more bearable, or maybe she was just beginning to get used to it, but either way she was sure that there was still many memories that she was still missing and that would be very painful to regain. She was fairly sure that there were still many memories of Rin and Shippo that she had yet to regain but was not looking forward to telling them that tomorrow. Pushing that thought aside she closed the door and turned back to see Sesshomaru had removed his bloody kimono top and was lying on the floor now with only his pants on.

Remembering what he'd said to Rin earlier she walked over and placed that hand that wasn't steadying Kohaku's sling on her hip in an irritated fashion.

"Why are you so hard on her Sesshomaru? We haven't seen our daughter in nearly a year and the first real sentence you say to her and its scolding her for calling me mommy! What's wrong with that?! She missed out on her childhood because of the wolves killing her family and the hunt for Naraku! I think she deserves to be able to be childish when she's alone with us. It's not fair what she went through as a child and I, for one, will NOT tell her that she must stop calling me mommy!" Sango said angrily.

'_I can't BELIEVE him sometimes! He's so protective of her, yet he acts so harshly to her whenever we do get to see her. I will never be able to figure out the way that man thinks!' _Sango thought.

Sesshomaru looked up at her with a slightly shocked expression. She sure had gotten worked up over this hadn't she? Admittedly, he had thought of Rin's rough childhood when he scolded her. He knew exactly what she'd gone through and what role it had played in molding the child's life and he wanted to make sure that she was strong enough mentally to handle that kind of pain happening again were anything ever to happen to those around her. He'd heard of many a human who'd gone completely insane when those that they loved were killed by demons and he wanted to make sure that never happened to Rin.

"She's a priestess now Sango. She doesn't need you to baby her. I want her to be strong enough to handle whatever life throws at her. Not everyone can take the death of their family members as well as you did. I want her to be prepared were something ever to happen to us," Sesshomaru stated as he watched his mate's anger melt away at his words.

Her eyes became soft as she gently sat down on the mat beside him. She smiled at his words as she realized that he was just being over protective again.

"Well you don't need to worry about that Sesshomaru because none of her family is going to die any time soon," Sango said with a gentle touch to his face.

He looked at her with those piercing golden eyes and she almost melted. Gods did she love him. What wouldn't she do for that demon?

'_Anything…I'd do anything for him…' _Sango thought as Sesshomaru leaned up and kissed her gently.

They stayed like that for a moment until Sango yawned slightly and Sesshomaru sat up to take Kohaku from her so that she could change out of her dirty traveling kimono. She was still covered in dirt from her encounter on the ground with the bear demon and as she dropped the kimono to the floor a small cloud of dust rose. Looking down, Sango laughed at the sight of the dust settling back onto the kimono as she stepped out of it and made her way to the closet to retrieve a clean sleeping yukata.

Sesshomaru smirked at the mess his mate had made of the floor with her dusty kimono and watched her avidly as she made her way over to the closet to retrieve something clean to sleep in. He would have to go to the washroom and clean his clothing tomorrow; the pants were clean enough to sleep in for now.

Donning the clean garment, Sango made her way back over to the mat and fed Kohaku fairly quickly before laying down with Sesshomaru to get some rest. Pulling her closer, Sesshomaru breathed in her heavenly scent. Today had been a stressful day for him and not being able to break free of the hoards of bear demons to get to Sango when she'd called for him had upset him. Had Shippo not come when he did then Sango would once again be hurt and it would have been his fault? Her uninjured scent soothed his fraying nerves and he was able to rest his body even if his mind refused to follow suit.

'_Tomorrow I leave to track down Takusi and exact my revenge for what he did to Sango, but first I must inform Rin and Shippo of the situation and say good bye to Sango, something I am very much not looking forward to having to do,'_ Sesshomaru thought as he stared at his mate's sleeping form.

In the back of his mind he dreaded having to leave Sango behind anywhere, despite the protection she would get being in an inconspicuous village with Rin and Shippo for protection. Not to mention the fact that Sango could very well take care of herself. He just hated being away from her.

Kissing the top of her head he whispered gently in her ear; "Promise me that you shall take care of yourself while I'm gone Sango…"

He had not been expecting an answer but a sleepy "I promise…" made him smile and bury his face in her silky hair. He really didn't have anything to worry about it's just that his mate always seemed to draw danger like a magnet. Even when they first met she had always been the one to have demons attack her, or even him for that matter were she around.

Slowly Sesshomaru drifted off to sleep as the memories of his past encounters with Sango's "demon magnet" problems played in his mind.

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**a/n: Wohoo! It's finally over... I warned yall it was bad and boring, but also necessary... . Sorry for the disappointing chappie but I'll try to make it up to yall in chappie 17, which should be pretty darn good, and hey at least this chappie wasn't a cliffie... ok so that really doesn't make up for the horribleness but oh well...**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW DESPITE THE HORRID BORINGNESS!!!**


	17. The Battle of Eight Years Past

**a/n: Hey yall! Aren't you proad of me?! I stayed up till 2:18am so that I could write this chapter since the last chappie was such a dudd. This one is by far my longest chapter and shows the begining of Sesshomaru's feelings towards Sango. Doesn't tell everything but that's what chappie 18 is for isn't it? ^.^ Well I hope yall like this chappie better than 17 cuz I personally think it's much better...Oh! Just incase you missed it last chappie THIS IS SESSHOMARU DREAMING ABOUT WHEN HE FIRST MET SANGO!!! Just thought I'd get that point across so that no one is confused! ON TO THE STORY!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't on Inuyasha... yet! Muahahahah! Ok so probly never but nah! .**

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Chapter 17- Battle of Eight Years Past

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**Eight years ago~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**~~~~~~~

Sesshomaru was engaging a powerful demon in battle in the middle of a forest somewhere on the farthest edges of his territory. As usual he was winning but this demon had proved to be far stronger than most demons that Sesshomaru had encountered.

It was a very ugly demon. A black, luminescent beetle's body, a spider's head, and eight skinny, hair covered legs that moved at an amazing speed. The demon's body reeked of poison and decaying flesh and Sesshomaru had thought it would be fairly easily taken care of. He had thought wrong. He had been forced to dodge attacks coming from each of its' eight legs as well as its' poisonous spit and webs that it could throw like a slimy, poisonous rock.

Leaping from tree to tree Sesshomaru had managed to avoid everything the creature had thrown at him without sustaining even a scratch.

"You are becoming a nuisance demon. Why is it that you are attacking me on my own land for no apparent reason?" Sesshomaru questioned as the demon paused its' attacks.

"You killed my comrades Lord of the West! I am merely returning the favor," the disgusting creature replied in a voice similar to nails grating against a chalkboard.

With ears ringing simply from the horrid sound of the creatures voice Sesshomaru frowned in displeasure. He had not memory of destroying anything that looked even remotely similar to this thing and especially not more than one, and there was no forgetting something that looked like THAT.

"You are mistaken demon. I have not killed anything like you before nor have I encountered a being as genetically fucked up as you, much less a number of them," Sesshomaru said as his annoyance with the thing grew, "I would, however, be happy to put you out of you misery." No one attacked him for no reason and got away with it.

"Hahaha. No Lord Sesshomaru, you have not killed my companions, yet. I am from the future and I plan to kill you before you ever get a chance to kill me and mine," the demon laughed, as he seemed to take pleasure in knowing something that Sesshomaru did not.

"If it is as you said then I shall kill you now and spare myself the trouble later on," Sesshomaru said as he drew Tokijin from his side.

Launching himself off of the branch he'd been standing on without another word Sesshomaru sliced his sword at the creature. It blocked with one of it's hardened legs and the two began the true battle. Both exchanged blows with neither receiving any major wounds. This continued on for a while until Sesshomaru was distracted by the scent of his brother's wench and the demon slayer approaching. The demon took advantage of this and elongated his neck to bite the demon lord squarely in the left shoulder and, in doing so, injecting a deadly cocktail of beetle, spider, and snake demon venom specially concocted to seek out a demon's poison and make it toxic for it's user.

Sesshomaru roared in pain and sliced at the demon with Tokijin as his vision blurred and he fell from his position in the forest canopy. He hit the ground hard and felt a few ribs crack as he blurrily watched the demon land on the ground and walk towards him, intent on finishing him off.

"Shit…" Sesshomaru thought before the venom dragged him into unconsciousness.

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Sango and Kagome had been on their way to the slayer's village to check up on things and had taken a shortcut through the outer edge of the western lands.

"Do you think Sesshomaru will know we came this way Sango?" Kagome asked, worried they'd be caught and punished for trespassing on his lands without permission.

"I doubt it Kagome. We're on the very edge of the western lands and the slayer village itself sits halfway on the border between the west and the east so I think we'll be fine."

The two had not been in the western lands long before they'd sensed Sesshomaru's demonic aura. They'd both been extremely worried until they sensed another demonic aura and realized that he must be fighting. Curious, they'd changed directions to see just whom the great Lord of the West was fighting that could possibly make his aura flare so wildly.

They hid behind a bush and watched as the battle between Sesshomaru and the ugly motley demon took place. Sango had never seen such an odd combination of demons before in a single being and it truly was an ugly sight to behold. In the middle of the battle though, Sesshomaru seemed to sense their presence and looked towards their direction; a bad move on his part seeing as the demon immediately ceased the chance and bit down on his left shoulder and injected what looked to be some kind of poison.

The two women watched in shock as Sesshomaru fell to the ground with a load crash and the demon jumped down to finish off what he'd started. Without thinking Sango ran forward and threw Hiraikotsu at the demon, catching it off guard and killing it instantly. Catching her weapon with a spin Sango ran to Sesshomaru's side to asses the damage. Kagome joined her momentarily and both girls looked at the bloody wound that was turning a sickly black and green color around the edges.

"Kagome I need you to get me some medicinal herbs that the slayers used to use for countering demonic poisons," Sango told Kagome quickly, "We can't just let him die."

Kagome had nodded and went to retrieve the herbs that Sango had told her. They were only minutes away from her old village and Kagome used her augmented speed to get her there and back faster. Upon returning she promptly handed the herbs over to Sango in a bowl so that she could mix them.

"I've heard of this kind of poison Kagome. It targets the victim's own demonic poison and turns it against them. So basically their body starts eating them from the inside out," Sango stated somberly as she mixed one group of herbs before opening Sesshomaru's mouth and forcing him to swallow, "What I'm doing is mixing two separate herbal remedies so that each one will negate one poison each and stop both poisons from working. Sesshomaru's body will be able to make new poison later but only after the herbal remedy is flushed from his system."

Kagome watched carefully in awe of Sango's knowledge. She had just begun her priestess training with Kaede and thought that her knowledge of herbal remedies was fairly vast considering her limited training. At seeing Sango's skill and knowledge, however, her boastful thoughts deflated greatly.

Finishing mixing the second set of herbs Sango leaned forward and once again forced Sesshomaru to swallow by emptying the contents down the back of his throat. Leaning back, she pulled a small roll of bandages out of her armor and requested a bottle of water from Kagome. Pouring the cleansing water onto the wound Sango quickly whipped away the excess blood and poison and neatly wrapped the wound.

"Now, all we have to do is wait for the herbs to take affect," Sango said as she whipped some of the blood onto the grass beside her.

"Wow Sango. You were amazing. I can't believe that you could tell what it was so quickly and remember all of the herbs for the remedy after so long," Kagome said in astonishment.

"It's really nothing Kagome. I was trained to know everything there is to know about demons and it's not really something you easily forget," Sango said, slightly blushing at her friends compliment.

"No way Sango. You're incredible at what you do! I don't think I could ever remember everything like that, especially under pressure," Kagome said as she tried to convince her friend for the hundredth time that she was an amazing person.

"Sure you will Kagome. Your just a little inexperienced. I bet that by the time Kaede's done with you you'll be the one that's the master of herbs and remedies; and who knows, maybe one day you'll be the one saving my life," Sango said as she tried to cover her blush.

Their conversation was interrupted, however, by an angry growl from in front of them. Turning, both women saw a very pissed off looking Sesshomaru that was currently glaring daggers at them with his frosty golden eyes.

"What's the meaning of this wench?!" Sesshomaru spat harshly; the last thing he remembered was his body being on fire and the creature coming towards him to finish him off.

"Sango saved your life that's what!" Kagome said indignantly.

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes and shifted his gaze over to the demon slayer who seemed to be pointedly looking everywhere but at him.

"An explanation, demon slayer," Sesshomaru said coldly.

Sango reluctantly looked into his cold golden eyes and informed him what she had done to save his life, ending with, "Don't worry Sesshomaru. As soon as the herbs have been flushed from your system your body will make its own poison again like nothing ever happened."

Sesshomaru simply stared at her for a moment as if trying to tell whether or not she was lying but he could not sense any deceit from the demon slayer but what motive would she have for helping him?

"Why?"

At that question Sango became very sullen and her own brown eyes became slightly sad and cold.

"Because you spared my brother's life once and now I'm returning the favor. I know you didn't have to but you did, and for that I owed you. Now my debt has been repaid," Sango said as she moved to stand.

That had not been an answer he'd been expecting. He had thought that surely the slayer would have wanted something from him. She knew of his sword's power yet she had not even requested that he use it to revive her brother as payment for his life. Very few people held honor so highly in recent times and this slayer seemed to be one of true honor.

'_Intriguing,'_ Sesshomaru thought as he watched her stand and retrieve her discarded weapon, _'this woman would think to repay a service that has long since been past. Most would forget and decide they no longer owed the person after no payment being asked for after such a long time. Honorable…'_

"Sesshomaru we must continue to my village. Would you like us to assist you there so that you can rest and recover from you injury?" Sango asked as she strapped Hiraikotsu to her back.

He was about to refuse when Rin's voice echoed through the forest and quickly made it to his sensitive ears.

"**Lord Sesshomaru**!"

The cry had been so desperate and scared that Sesshomaru was on his feet in an instant and wobbled as his brain sent a wave of vertigo throughout his body.

'_Damn!' _he cursed inwardly.

He would not be able to get to her quickly enough in this state. What has he going to do?

"Kagome! Stay here with Sesshomaru. I'm going to go save Rin," Sango yelled as she ran towards the direction of the scream.

Sesshomaru watched in complete shock as the demon slayer disappeared into the forest to save his ward. His mind spun as he tried to think of the reasoning for her to do such. He had never truly encountered the slayer before, seeing her only a few times when he attacked his brother and then at Naraku's last stand. What possible reason would she have for saving his Rin?

Coming up with nothing he decided that he should go make sure that Rin was ok and that the slayer did not have some elaborate scheme to kill him and his charge up her sleeve. He nearly fell as he took his first step but was caught by the demon slayer's neko who'd been quietly observing in the background and had transformed just in time to keep him from hitting the ground painfully.

"Here Sesshomaru, let me help you on to Kirara so that we can go find Sango," the priestess said from beside him

He had begrudgingly allowed her to help him onto the two-tailed cat and they set off in the direction Sango had gone. When they arrived they found three more of the ugly mixed up demons dead on the ground in pieces and Rin sitting beside Sango's prone form that seemed to be greatly injured.

"Sango!" Kagome yelled from her position behind Sesshomaru on Kirara.

"Lord Sesshomaru!" Rin cried out to her master as the fire cat landed and he painfully stepped off.

"Sango! Please Sango, please be ok!" Kagome cried as she collapsed next to her blood-covered friend.

Sesshomaru could tell that the slayer was on the brink of death and called for Rin so that they could leave.

"Please Lord Sesshomaru! Lady Sango saved Rin from those demons. If she hadn't then Rin would be dead right now!" Rin pleaded with her lord.

He was about to scold the child for her disobedience when Tenseiga began pulsing at his side.

'_So you want me to save this human woman, eh Tenseiga?'_ Sesshomaru thought as he put one hand on the sword's hilt.

This human woman had not only just saved his life but also the life of his ward, she had requested no payment and had simply brushed it off as payment for sparing her brother so long ago, and now Tenseiga was telling him to spare her life.

'_What harm could it possibly do to spare the woman who has saved Rin's life?'_ Sesshomaru though as he unsheathed Tenseiga and told the crying priestess to move aside.

Quickly swiping the sword through the underworld's gathering demons he sheathed his blade and turned to leave.

"The slayer will live Rin. Let us take our leave," Sesshomaru stated as he walked away.

"Yes Lord Sesshomaru!" Rin chirped happily, "See you later Lady Kagome! Tell Lady Sango that I'll come to make sure she's ok soon!"

With that, the demon Lord of the West and his young word walked away into the forest with a single aloof thought to the demon slayer whose life he'd just saved.

'_She's just another pathetic human. Not worth my time. I have repaid my debt and that is the end of it,'_ Sesshomaru thought as he entered the shade of the forests' trees.

Oh how wrong he was…

* * *

**a/n: OOOOOOOO!!!! Exciting chappie and Sango saves Sesshomaru and then Sesshomaru saves Sango! Ironic much? Oh well... That's just the begining of their relationship so don't freak out anyone that isn't why they fell in love it just plays a big part in it. ^.^ This chappie was 6 pages long compared to my usual 3 or 4 so I'm very proad of myself... hehehe....**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW SINCE THIS TIME'S MUCH BETTER THAN LAST TIME!!!**


	18. Battle of Raging Hormones

**a/n: Hey yall! I'm finally back! ^.^ Sorry for the long update. I've been working alot more since school got out. OOOO!!! I almost forgot to tell yall that my brother had his first baby!!! He's absolutely adorable and is a major reason behind me not updating as much. SO CUTE!!!!! Sorry... Anyways, I also wanted to take this time to clarify something important that was adressed in one of the reviews. One of my awesome reviewers brought to my attention that Tenseiga can only bring back to life people that are already dead and can only do it once. Well guess what yall? I'm making a little bit of a story insert here! It's my story so Tenseiga can bring people back to life more than once if they're not already dead because it's alot more powerful now that Sesshy is more mentally strong. Hey can do it(and she's a totally AWESOME writer) so so can I!!! ****^,^(That's me sticking my tongue out at yall! TEHEE!!!)**

**DISCLAIMER: I BEZ NOT OWNIN INU! I CRY NOW!!! ;(**

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Chapter 18- Battling the Raging Hormones

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**Eight Years Ago**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It had been days since Tenseiga had prompted him to save the slayer's life, and yet the demon lord could not seem to get her out of his mind. There was just something about the way her brown eyes dug into his own golden ones when she'd thanked him for saving her brother in her own proud way.

He'd scolded himself continuously since then whenever his thoughts went back to the slayer; it just wouldn't do for the human hating demon lord to let anyone know that a very human demon slayer had occupied his thoughts for days on end. It didn't help that Rin had been asking him at least twice a day, everyday, when they were going to go visit "Lady Sango". He'd ultimately relented a day ago and they were now heading towards the slayer's village with Rin riding Ah-Uhn and Jaken leading them with a set of leather reins secured to bridles on each of the dragon's twin heads.

The ugly toad demon had wailed about the injustice of a demon having to willingly go to a demon slayer's village since they'd started their journey until Sesshomaru had sent him an icy glare that affectively shut him up. Rin, on the other hand, had been infinitely excited and had happily hugged his calf in thanks; a show of affection that he quickly brushed off and turned away from.

The group had been traveling since noon the day before and was just beginning to see the tall walls of the ruined slayers village as the sun set behind them. Sesshomaru sighed in annoyance at the fact that not only would he have to spend the night in the presence of two human females, but also have to spend time around the woman who'd somehow put a spell on his mind.

'_That must be it,'_ Sesshomaru thought bitterly, _'That wench must have used her slayer magic to put some kind of spell on me, otherwise I would never have my thoughts centered on some plain looking human woman.'_

However his mind betrayed him yet again as an image of Sango in her tight black slayer's suit that clearly shows exactly how toned and curvaceous her human body truly is, causing the demon lord to growl lowly. His body reacted slightly to the mental image that he, himself, had conjured and, had it been anyone other than the frigid demon lord himself, the reaction would have been clearly visible to all around.

"Lord Sesshomaru?" Rin questioned from his side. She had obviously heard the growl and was wondering what could have possibly upset her lord when they were simply walking quietly along the road.

Looking down in shock Sesshomaru was surprised that Rin had not only gotten off of Ah-Uhn by herself without his notice but had apparently been walking by his side for quite a while since the two headed dragon's scent was already faint on her body.

'_What is this human woman doing to me?'_ Sesshomaru thought in horror.

Through all his mental torment though, his mask of emotionless calm remained and to Rin it seemed that the growl had come from nowhere.

"It is nothing Rin. We are approaching the slayer's village and you shall get to see the lady slayer for a day before we must move on," Sesshomaru said as he skillfully steered the child away from a conversation that would indefinitely have been uncomfortable.

"Yay! Thank you Lord Sesshomaru!!!" Rin yelled excitedly as she ran towards the gates that were now in view.

Sesshomaru sighed inwardly as he watched his young ward run towards the gates at top speed, waving excitedly, and yelling out the slayer's name loudly. He watched as the slayer, now clothed in a plain pink and white traveling kimono with a green material wrapped around her from the waist down, and the priestess, clothed in the normal priestess' hakama that was green and white, came to the gate to greet the young girl who had been excitedly yelling the slayer's name for at least the last five minutes.

Rin didn't hesitate to run straight into the slayers' waiting arms and hug her warmly before moving to the priestess and doing the same. It amazed him how she could be so trusting towards people that she barely knew and rarely ever came into contact with. He stopped a short distance away from the happy group of human females and chose not to acknowledge their presence for as long as he could. To bad that Sango, always the observant demon slayer, noticed the great lord's annoyance and made her way over to greet him.

"Hello Sesshomaru. I wanted to thank you for saving my life, since I didn't get the chance to at the time, and for bringing Rin to visit as well."

Sesshomaru turned his eyes towards her, about to brush off her apology, only to be met by the same captivating brown eyes that had been swirling around in his mind for days. Pulling himself together he merely nodded in acknowledgement before turning to head back into the forest. Rin knew that he would return for her when he was ready, and if he didn't leave immediately then he didn't know what his body would do.

'_Damned mating season!'_ he thought angrily as he fled the slayer's village quickly, leaving Sango standing alone in the road.

Not quickly enough, apparently, as the wind blew a large burst of the slayer's scent into his sensitive nostrils as he fled and caused his inner demon to stir in longing. It took every bit of self-control that he had not to turn back and take the slayer there on the ground in front of the priestess AND Rin.

He may be a powerful demon lord but even he is not able to escape the way his body reacts to a female in heat during mating season. As it was he forced down his raging demon and pheromones and pushed his body to its' top speed to leave the area surrounding the slayer's village that seemed to somehow be bathed in the woman's scent.

After running for miles Sesshomaru stopped at a small stream. He was annoyed to see that his eyes were starting to bleed red at the sides and the stripes on his cheeks were slightly jagged.

'_What is this human woman doing to me?'_ he thought for the second time as he forced his countenance to return to normal.

Making sure that his mask of calm was back in place Sesshomaru stood and turned to make his way back towards the village; he couldn't stay to far away from Rin since the little girl seemed to be a magnet for danger. He'd just have to make sure that he kept a tight lid on his hormones while around the slayer and stay at a distance.

It had quickly become dark and the moon was already at its highest point in the sky when the slayer's village came into his view for the second time that day; he'd run further than he'd first thought. After catching Rin scent in a hut near the center of the village along with the two other human women, and taking note of Jaken and Ah-Uhn's position in the far back corner of the village, Sesshomaru leapt into a large tree far enough away from the women that the slayer's faint scent would not affect him, but close enough to step in were anything to happen.

Settling in for the night Sesshomaru lay against the tree's trunk and stretched one leg out along the branch while the other remained bent and erect. Mentally exhausted from his inner turmoil over the slayer Sesshomaru allowed his lids to drift shut and with crickets chirruping serenely around him he allowed his mind to drift into unconsciousness with one last wayward thought.

'The slayer's scent is only this intoxicating because of mating season and her body being in heat. As soon as the season is over I will no longer be under the power of her feminine wiles and she will no longer control my thoughts.'

* * *

**a/n: Well there you go. It's kind weird and Sesshy's pretty OC but hey, deal with it *.*!!! ...Kidding! Don't be mad! I sorry!!! **

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW!!!**


	19. The Burning Flame of Love

**a/n: Hey yall! It is currently 5:42am here in Texas and I am thouroughly exhausted. However, I did manage to write an extra super dooper long chappie for yall as well as write a 6 or 7 page long one shot for a Naruto story that I just decided to write. If you like Neji/Ten then you should go check it out, if not then totally ignore what I'm talking about ^.^ Neways, this should be the last chappie of Sesshy dream of the past. Next chappie will be back to present time again and I just hope that this is a sufficient enough background story for those of yall who think that Sesshy would only get with Sango if somethin huge happened. Well mine aint huge it's just called time and kindness! Muahahahah!!!!....sorry, I've had to have alot of sugar to stay up this late and finish this chappie.... NEWAYZ..... ON TO THE CHAPPIE!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Inuyasha..Blah...blah...snore...blah *-***

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Chapter 19- The Burning Flame of Love

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Eight Years Ago~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sesshomaru was awoken shortly after he'd fallen asleep by the sounds of Rin's desperate screams and the smell of burning wood reaching his nostrils. Awake in an instant, Sesshomaru was up and standing on the branch in the tree just outside the village where he could clearly see that there were a number of various demons attacking the already decimated village and one of them, a fire breathing mini-dragon demon, had lit the hut that the female woman had been staying in on fire.

The demon lord wasted no time in leaping from the branch, over the wall, and into the village where he easily sliced his claws through the fire-breathing demon; thus preventing the demon from lighting anything else on fire. Not pausing to acknowledge his minor victory Sesshomaru drew Tokijin and sliced through the burning wood that had fallen in front of the door and prevented the women from escaping the burning hut.

Once inside the hut Sesshomaru swiftly looked around trying to locate the position of his charge since the burning wood dominated his sense of smell and the child's minute scent was not enough to pinpoint her location. It didn't take him long to notice that the slayer had pushed the priestess and Rin into the corner and was now holding her Hiraikotsu up to prevent the burning wood from collapsing on them and burning their vulnerable human flesh. There was already a large wooden beam that had fallen down and was now on fire pushing down on the slayer's weapon and threatening to crush them all.

Moving swiftly Sesshomaru sliced the offending beam in half before grabbing the weapon and pulling it up to reveal the slayer covering the other two females with her own body. Easily he bent down and grabbed the slayer's arm and hoisted her up; she holding Rin in one arm while clutching to the priestess' wrist with the other. Without checking to see if the priestess was coming or not Sesshomaru dragged the woman who held Rin, wearing Sango's slayer mask, out of the burning hut and to the wall of the village where he sat them down and turned to deal with the rest of the demons.

He made quick work of the few low class demons that had been stupid enough to remain after the Lord of the West had arrived and easily made his way back over to the three women who now sat, soot covered and weary, exactly where he'd put them when he'd dragged them from the hut. Sesshomaru first looked Rin over completely to be sure that no harm had come to her. Once satisfied that she was unharmed he quickly ran his eyes over the slayer in a much similar and protective way; the priestess he did not look upon once, he had no interest in Inuyasha's wench and it was not his job to protect her.

It angered him that he'd once again felt protective over the slayer that had, for the second time, saved the life of his young charge. He eyed the mask that still hung loosely around young Rin's neck and knew that it was the reason that she was not coughing like the other two women were right now.

'_Yet again she puts Rin's life over her own. Could this human woman actually be different from the rest?'_ Sesshomaru thought as he began to see the human woman before him in a new light, _'She cannot be wholly human. No human would repeatedly sacrifice themselves for a child that is not their own. What is she then? I sense to demon blood within her.'_

Silently he observed the slayer who now had tears building in her eyes. Slightly alarmed, Sesshomaru took a quick glance around to see what could have possibly made the woman cry. It then occurred to him that this was the second time she'd had to watch her village desecrated. He watched as one lone tear fell from the slayer's eyes before she swiftly swiped it away and put on a big fake smile for Rin who'd asked her what was wrong.

"Oh nothing Rin. I just got some soot in my eye but it's gone now,' Sango lied smoothly, "How are you feeling?"

"Rin is fine Lady Sango! Your pretty mask kept me from coughing just like you said it would."

"That's good Rin I'm glad to hear it," Sango said with a genuine smile, "but I think we're going to have to work on some speech lessons for you pretty soon. If that's alright with your Lord Sesshomaru that is."

Sesshomaru was shocked that Sango not only wanted to protect Rin but was also interested in teaching the young girl how to speak properly as well.

"We shall discuss such arrangements later demon slayer. Now we should move to a small clearing a short distance from here and you humans shall get to sleep," Sesshomaru said as he turned to make his way out of the slayer's village and towards the clearing that he'd seen on his way back from the stream.

"Hold on just a second Sesshomaru. I need to get my Hiraikotsu first," Sango said as she ran towards the charred remnants of the hut that was no longer burning and called for Kirara to help her find her weapon.

While Sesshomaru was watching the slayer pick through the ashes trying to find her weapon Jaken and Ah-Uhn made their appearance and the toad began to complain at once.

"Lord Sesshomaru! Thank goodness you came my lord! I had thought that I was going to have to save the pathetic human child myself."

Sesshomaru's foot quickly met the imp's face and sufficiently shut him up. Rin giggled at the common occurrence between her master and his annoying toad vassal. This happened all the time and she was not at all shocked at her master's actions. Sango laughed as well as she returned with Hiraikotsu, slightly charred but otherwise ok, on her back.

"Quite effective if I do say so myself Sesshomaru," Sango said with a slight giggle in her tone.

Sesshomaru quirked a brow at the way the slayer was regarding him so nonchalantly. Did this human woman see him as her friend simply because he'd saved her twice as payment for her saving Rin each time as well?

"How dare you speak to Lord Sesshomaru so casually wench!?" Jaken screamed from the place that Sesshomaru had kicked him to moments earlier.

"I'd shut up if I were you you stupid ugly toad! I will do much more than kick you a few feet," Sango threatened as she half growled at the toad.

Sesshomaru smirked at the interaction between his vassal and the slayer but chose to ignore it as he made his way out of the village and towards the clearing. He could hear that the others were following closely behind and out of his peripheral vision he could see the slayer and Jaken giving each other dirty looks; Jaken's being ugly and deformed looking while Sango's was much more menacing and fierce.

While Sesshomaru was immensely amused by the slayer's actions you could not tell it by looking at him. His emotionless mask remained in place except for the small smirk that had sneaked its' way onto his face as he watched the two bicker like children.

Upon reaching the clearing Sesshomaru made his way over to the base of a large tree and settled himself between its' roots. He would not make the mistake of falling asleep again tonight, but from that position he had a beautiful view of the starry sky above them and he chose to sit and watch it while the others lay down to sleep again.

* * *

It was not long before the sun began to rise but Sesshomaru did not expect the humans to be waking up any time soon. They were exhausted from their battle with the fire and their weak human bodies had to rest for longer to recuperate from such an event. It was because of this thinking that Sesshomaru was mildly surprised when the slayer awoke and after a moment made her way over to him.

Catching the slightest whiff of her scent, the demon lord immediately shut down his sense of smell as he watched her approach him.

"Good morning Sesshomaru. I wanted to thank you for getting us out of the hut last night," Sango paused to await his reaction, a cool nod, before continuing, "Also, I wanted to talk to you about letting Rin come visit me at Kaede's village every now and then so that I can teach her how to speak properly and some of the other things that she'll need to know as a growing woman."

Sesshomaru stopped to contemplate what the woman was saying for a moment before mentally agreeing that Rin was growing and would need to know things about her body and other various things that human women usually do.

"Alright slayer. I shall bring Rin every other week to visit you at the old hag's village. During such times I expect you to fully devote your time to teaching Rin everything that she needs to know. I will be watching to make sure you do such," Sesshomaru said coolly.

He half expected the slayer to be angry with him after what he'd said but once again the woman surprised him by smiling happily and agreeing to his terms before making her way back over to Rin and the other woman.

'_I can not figure that woman out,'_ Sesshomaru thought, annoyed, _'but I do know that she is no ordinary human and I do intend to find out exactly what she is.'_

* * *

The more Sesshomaru watched her the more confused he became. The slayer rarely ever did what he expected her to do and during the rare times that she did it was not in a way he'd imagined she would have done it. Catching fish for lunch, for example. He had expected that she would be the one to catch their food seeing as Rin was too young and the priestess was absolutely useless, but he'd also thought that she would use some kind of net or weapon from her village. Instead she had hiked up her kimono, a motion that definitely didn't go unnoticed by the demon lord, and waded into the water. After a few moments of standing bent over with her hands in the water the swiftly grabbed one of the fish that had been lazily swimming between her hands.

Sango had quickly caught them each a fish and she was even kind enough to catch one for Sesshomaru, Jaken, and two for Ah-Uhn. Sesshomaru simply nodded in acknowledgement when Rin had brought him the freshly cooked fish. Jaken, however, had adamantly refused to eat anything cooked by the slayer and was forced to watch as everyone else ate their food graciously.

Sango even took the time to give Ah-Uhn its' food first before eating her own. She'd cooked its' fish just enough that it was tender and had given each one of the dragon's heads its' own fish. After being sure that everyone else was taking care of Sango finally sat down and ate her fish that had almost started to get cold from what Sesshomaru could smell. She didn't complain, however, and if she did notice that it was no longer hot she didn't acknowledge it in the slightest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Time Skip (One week)~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first time that Sesshomaru brought Rin to the slayer for their promised lessons Sango acted as if she was happy to see him. She'd even taken it upon herself to ask him if he'd like to stay with her and Rin for dinner since she'd be cooking in her own hut away from Inuyasha and the others. He'd debated for a moment but Rin's pleading and Sango's urging eventually made up his mind.

He stayed and watched as Sango taught Rin how to make a traditional Japanese meal of rice and beef curry, a stew-like substance made with meet from a deer that Sango had killed in preparation for the meal. Rin had been quite interested and learned very quickly. It seemed that the slayer would be a good teacher after all.

The meal was eaten in a comfortable silence and Sesshomaru was surprised to find that he actually quite liked this meaty substance. The rice he was not particularly fond of, but his dog demon nature preferred meat to vegetables and fruits anyway. Sango had smiled at him as he finished his meal and, leaving an empty plate, told the two women that he would be close by.

* * *

Each time he brought Rin to see the slayer Sesshomaru seemed to become closer and closer to her. His initial suspicions of the woman were long forgotten and slowly his hate for her as a human melted away to show his respect for her as a warrior and as a teacher for Rin. The child, herself, saw the slayer as a mother figure just as he knew that she saw him as a father figure. His feelings for the slayer, however, were simply respect and admiration for her skills and her kindness, nothing more.

It was only after he witnessed the monk shatter her heart that he truly realized the extent to which his feelings had spread. He'd once again come to drop of Rin for one of her "training sessions", as the child had come to call them, and had left Rin at the slayer's hut while he went to find her since she was not there. He had not expected to find the slayer in the middle of a heated argument with the monk. In fact it had never really occurred to him that she was even still seeing the monk after Naraku's death.

Jealousy flared up before he had a chance to recognize the feelings that the thought of Sango with the monk had stirred within him. His distress was undue, however, as the monk had promptly dumped her saying that she wasn't good enough for him and that she was ugly and scarred. This, however, brought forth an anger that was unexpectedly fierce and were it not for the breaking woman before him he might have killed the monk before he had a chance to leave the village. Instead, Sesshomaru walked forward and gently picked the slayer up before taking her to Inuyasha's priestess' hut. She needed emotional support that only the priestess could give her but before he'd entered the hut Sango managed to sob out a broken apology for not being there when he brought Rin.

"Foolish woman. Do you not think that I am understanding to your current state?" Sesshomaru had said before he entered the hut and left her in the care of Inuyasha and Kagome.

After that the demon lord found more and more reasons for being around more often and soon he rarely ever left the village. Rin had taken up nearly permanent residence in the hut with Sango, and dinner every night was cooked by Sango and shared by just the three of them. They had become an unspoken family and it was not long after that Sesshomaru finally discovered that he had fallen in love with the beautiful slayer who he and Rin had become so close to.

It had taken him a while after that to come to terms with his feelings and even longer to express them to Sango. She had eagerly returned them and, despite Inuyasha's hesitation to trust his half brother, they had gotten married some time later. Rin was absolutely ecstatic to finally have an actual family and Sango had truly raised Rin as if she were her own; training her in the art of demon slaying, teaching her how to cook and do housework, as well as introducing her to healing and helping her with whatever "homework" that Kagome gave her during her studies under the priestess.

The couple had been happy to raise Rin and watch her grown up. Sango surprising him more than a few times during their relationship with the reforming of his arm, and the news that the process had merged some of his demon blood with hers giving her many demonic abilities. It was not until Rin had grown and married Shippo that the couple had gotten the happy news that Sango was expecting.

Those were some of the happiest days of his life and Sesshomaru was immensely glad that Sango had saved his life in the forest that day and had started the spark that had eventually led to their burning flame of love that now existed today.

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**a/n: OMG I just realised that I am SUPER hungry!!! Uncool... . ...Neways, another chappie in the past that's really not all that eventful but hey, you gotta have a background and at least it wasn't a cliffie. Come to think of it I haven't ended in a cliffie in a long time! Aren't you proad of me!?!?! -.- you're not, are you?....*Tear!***

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW OR I'LL CRY SOME MORE!!! (*note huge anime tear marks T.T *)**


	20. The Bruise and The Broken Village

**a/n: Hey Yall!!! Sorry I haven't updated in a while but to tell you the truth I really haven't been in the writing kind of mood. Not to mention that my internet's being gay and it's pissing me off . .... Anyways, we're back to the present time for this chappie and I'm sorry if some of you were disappointed with my background story for this story but hey, it's a side story not the whole story and I caint spend seven or eight chappies in the past. I may go back later and write a prologue story to this one telling fully about their budding relationship but that is not what this story is about and I already spent a good three or four chappies in the past. Anyway, ON TO THE STORY!!! ^.^**

**DISCLAIMER: IT MAY HAVE BEEN A WHILE BUT I STILL DON'T OWN INUYASHA... Yall are wishin I did now aren't you O.o!!! **

* * *

Chapter 20- The Bruise and the Broken Village

~~~~~~~~~~~~~Present Time~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sango awoke slowly with a loud yawn and the warm presence of her mate's body heat on her back. Smiling, she turned around and lifted her eyes to Sesshomaru's calm face, meeting his gleaming golden eyes with her own sleepy brown ones.

"Hey…"

"Did you sleep well?" Sesshomaru asked as he pulled her in for a chaste kiss.

"Mhmm…"

Sesshomaru smirked at his mate's dazed response. It pleased him greatly that even after eight years of marriage he could still leave his wife breathless. He released her from his protective grasp and watched as she stood to stretch out the kinks that her body had acquired overnight. He did not miss the wince when Sango stretched out her back and took note to watch her incase she had received an injury that he had not smelt.

Sango, who'd thought she'd hidden the sign of pain from him, slowly walked to the closet to retrieve a clean kimono to wear for the day. Shrugging her sleeping yakuta off with her back turned towards her mate she did not expect to hear a feral growl come from the man, who just seconds ago, was completely calm and content.

"Sesshomaru?" Sango questioned as she turned around to look at her mate who was angrily staring at her.

'_Why's he glaring at me? What did I do?'_ Sango thought as her brows knitted together in confusion.

She watched her mate as he stood from his spot on the floor, placing Kohaku onto a pillow, and strode across the room to the spot that she currently stood. Sango's mind raced at what she could have possibly done to anger her mate.

'_Has the sight of my scarred back finally angered him? Has he finally decided against having such a scarred mate?' _Sango thought as her worst fear again made itself known in her mind's vulnerable state.

"Sesshomaru, I…"

She was cut off by Sesshomaru grabbing her arm gently, spinning her around, and kneeling to the floor behind her; twisting her neck almost painfully Sango tried to see what he was doing. It was then that her eye caught the mirror that hung on the closet door; a gift from Kagome's time to outfit all of the Inu family's homes. What she saw immediately answered the question of Sesshomaru's odd behavior.

An enormous blue and black bruise had formed on her back where she'd fallen on a large rock the day before while battling the bear demons. It spread from the small of her back up her right side and halfway up her rib cage before fading to a red and then pale tan. She could see Sesshomaru's face in the mirror and it now appeared to be more guilt ridden than angry. Sango was about to speak when he stood and carefully wrapped his arms around her from behind.

"That injury was from yesterday's battle isn't it Sango?" Sesshomaru questioned quietly, his head now resting on the shoulder opposite the injury.

Merely nodding Sango closed her eyes and leaned back into her mate's strong chest. Truthfully the large bruise was quite painful, and she was sure that a few of her ribs had probably been broken the day before, but her augmented healing had already mended that damage and she knew that the bruise itself would disappear before the end of the day.

"It's nothing Sesshomaru. It has already begun to heal," Sango said hoping to soothe her mate whom she was sure was currently beating himself up for not "protecting her well enough".

The look on his face was enough to confirm her suspicions and she sighed deeply. Still within his arms, Sango turned to face him and placed her right hand softly on his cheek.

"This is nothing Sesshomaru and it is not your fault that I couldn't hold off a mere bear demon. I guess I'm just not as strong without all of my memories," Sango said, trailing off at the end as she tried to recall more memories of her training and only ended up with a throbbing headache, "Your injuries were worse than this by far."

Sesshomaru merely pulled her to him again with one hand resting on the back of her head and the other on her left hip. She felt as he took in a deep breath and inhaled her scent completely as he was prone to do in times of stress or worry. Sango merely smiled and wrapped her arms around his broad form.

"It is not nothing Sango. I should have protected you and I didn't. Were it not for Shippo's arrival then you and Kohaku would have been in danger. I have failed you."

"No Sesshomaru. You will never fail us," Sango said as she raised her head and looked deeply into his pain filled eyes, "You were fighting off the other demons and as a demon slayer I should have been able to handle one bear demon. I don't want to hear you blaming yourself for this!"

Sesshomaru stared into her chocolate brown orbs for a moment before closing his eyes and sighing in defeat. He knew that look and it told him that there was no way he was going to win that conversation. Smiling at his mate's defiant expression, he was happy to see that she was finally starting to act like herself again.

'_Even if she hasn't regained all her memories.' _Sesshomaru thought as he opened his eyes again, _'Just how much, though, has she remembered about Rin and Shippo?'_

"We should finish dressing Sango. Rin and Shippo will be waiting for us, and from the look Rin gave you yesterday when you were telling her of your 'situation' she will be very eager to hear what we have to say," Sesshomaru said as he released her and moved to retrieve one of his own larger kimono's from the closet.

Sango smiled and nodded in response before finishing pulling on her kimono that had been hanging at her waist since Sesshomaru's growl. Moving to feed Kohaku once again while Sesshomaru dressed, it did not take long for the baby to eat its' fill and the couple to be ready to go.

Leaving their room and sliding the door shut behind them, Sango and Sesshomaru made their way to the kitchen where they could smell Rin making breakfast. Sango offered to help but Rin adamantly refused saying that this was her house and they were her guests. Of course Sango's motherly nature made it nearly impossible to simply sit and watch as Rin did all the work.

Sesshomaru and Shippo had already launched themselves into an in depth conversation about the growing bear demon population in the area and how it was beginning to be a problem. Their talk was put on hold, however, as Rin brought each of them a plate and they began eating. Sango put Kohaku in his sling and enjoyed a tasty breakfast full of animated discussion courtesy of her daughter. When they'd all finished eating they moved to the sitting room to have their discussion.

Sango leaned against her husband with her baby in her arms as he retold the events leading up to their arrival and how Sango was still missing many of her memories. Rin had cried when he'd told of Sango's death and the pain she was still experiencing due to sudden memory attacks. Shippo had a reaction quite similar to his adoptive father, a certain silver haired hanyou, and was seething by the time Sesshomaru finished his tale and Sango told them her experience at the mansion.

"So that's why you brought Sango here Sesshomaru? So that you could go find that bastard and give him what he rightfully deserves?" Shippo asked while trying to soothe Rin and suppress his own anger at the same time.

"Yes. I need you to protect Sango while I am away," Sesshomaru said as he once again had to force himself not become angry at his mate's retelling of what happened at the mansion, "I do not know how long I shall be gone but it should not take me long to track and dispose of him by myself."

"Very well Sesshomaru. I would request to go with you but I know that I am more needed here to protect Sango," Shippo said with a sigh, "However, we need a way to reach you should anything happen while you are away."

"There's no need," Sango said with a smile, "If we need him I can call to him through our mating mark. Plus, I have many ancient slayer secrets that I could use if we needed him here instantly."

Rin looked at her mother with a slightly confused look. She had been trained as a slayer yet she was never taught of such spells or secrets.

"What secrets mother?" Rin asked; sure to respect her father's wishes and address her as "mother" instead of "mommy."

"Secrets that only the most experienced slayers can understand Rin. You were never a violent fighter, you are more adept to healing and priestess duties; therefore I chose not to tell you about some of the more complex and violent of the slayer's secrets."

Rin looked slightly put off for a moment before she realized that her mother was absolutely right; she wasn't a fighter, she was a healer. Her skills at fighting were only used when absolutely necessary and only to protect others. She smiled and decided not to question her mother further on the topic since Sango always seemed to know what was best for her and would not have kept things a secret from her had she needed to know.

Sesshomaru looked at his mate quizzically. She had not told even HIM about some of the secret spells of the ancient demon slayer's that had been entrusted to her.

'_That was made clear when she restored my arm. I had no idea that the slayer's held that kind of power,'_ Sesshomaru thought as he smiled at his mate.

He trusted her though, and would not question what little tricks she had up her sleeve. However, it suddenly occurred to him that Sango was speaking of her slayer training. Had she not told him herself that she could not recall her memories of her training?

"Sango. Your training, do you remember?" Sesshomaru asked as he eyed his mate.

With a sigh Sango turned to her mate and looked into his piercing golden eyes.

"I know what your asking Sesshomaru and yes, I did have another memory attack and did not tell you."

Brows knitting together in irritation Sesshomaru sighed, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples to try to relieve the stress he was feeling.

"How bad?"

A simple question but one that Sango did not overly want to answer.

"Not bad Sesshomaru… I-"

"Please do not lie to me Sango. I'm your mate and I need to know," Sesshomaru said, cutting her off before she had a chance to continue.

Sango merely closed her eyes and hung her head slightly.

"It was excruciating," Sango said with her brown eyes still hidden behind her closed lids, "Last night I left to go to the bathroom and I saw many slayer weapons decorating the walls of the hall. The memories were very hazy, as expected, but when I pushed they cleared up quickly and the pain of the knowledge accompanied them."

Sesshomaru's fist was now tightly clenched and his claws had dug five small ruts in the floor where they'd ground across it in an attempt to relieve some of his anger.

"How much do you remember Sango?"

"Only my training with my father and the other demon slayer's. Speaking of which, why can I not return to my village? I would be safe there and I'd like to see my father as well."

Her innocent question drove a stake into Sesshomaru's heart. How could he tell her that her clan was no more? That they had been annihilated by Naraku and her little brother, for whom their son was named, had been used as Naraku's puppet to slay her family.

"Please Sango. I ask that you do not question me concerning your family and your past until I have restored your memories. All will be made clear then, and until then I want you to promise me that you will stay with Shippo and Rin and will not try to return to your village," Sesshomaru asked in a pain filled voice that Sango could not refuse if she'd tried.

"Ok Sesshomaru, I promise. I'm sorry to have upset you my love," Sango said, saddened that she had caused her mate pain by asking such a question.

'_Perhaps my father did something terrible since I mated a demon and I cannot remember,'_ Sango thought as she decided to drop the subject and try to remember later, after Sesshomaru left, so that he would not feel guilty for the pain she suffered as the memories returned.

'_Remembering all of the memories leading up to her villages' destruction will hurt her mentally and physically. I cannot risk telling her. I will just have to defeat Takusi quickly and find that witch of fathers' to make the antidote,'_ Sesshomaru thought as he hoped that Sango would keep her promise and not go to the ruined slayer's village while he was away, _'I'll have to speak to Shippo about ensuring her promise before I leave.'_

_

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**a/n: Well there yall go. The first chappie back to the present from Sesshomaru's dream/memories. What do yall think? I know I'm kinda rusty since I haven't updated in a while _(~.~)_ but it's not that bad right. _(*Nods*)_ ...but, but...*sweatdrop*... alright it kinda was... -.- *sigh* Anywayz, yall know the drill...**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW!!! ^.^**


	21. The Bastard's Return

**a/n: Hey yall! This story's getting just about ready to come to a close. A few more chappies, I don't know how many really but not many more, and that's it. As I said before I may or may not write a prequel to this one, it just depends on what yall think so just review and let me know! ^.^ Well here's chappie 21 I hope yall enjoy! ...ON TO THE CHAPPIE!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: I ONLY OWN MY OC'S, EVEN THOUGH I KILL MOST OF THEM OFF, BUT I _DO_ OWN THEM! MUAHAHAH! ^,^**

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Chapter 21- The Bastard's Return

It had been three days since Sesshomaru had left Sango with Rin and Shippo so that he could pursue Takusi. During that time Rin had tried to stay with her as much as possible so that she didn't get lonely, but she was the village's priestess and healer and as such she had many duties to perform that she could not put off or ignore.

"I'll be back in a few hours mom," Rin said as she slung her bow and quiver onto her back, "It won't take long to place a few blessings on some of the village huts and help old lady Misami with her back pains. If you want to you can come with me!"

"No Rin, I'll only get in your way. I'll stay here and watch over the house while you and Shippo are out."

Slightly disappointed at her mother's refusal, Rin hugged her tightly before waving goodbye and heading off towards the village. Sango waved back and turned to enter the house again. A sudden urge to clean hit Sango as she looked at the house that was only slightly dirty and the pile of dishes that had yet to be washed from their lunchtime meal. Holding Kohaku up in front of her Sango smiled.

"Well my little Kohaku looks like we've got some work to do."

Kohaku giggled at his mother's funny expression as she tied her kimono sleeves up so that she could get to work. Retrieving a triangular piece of cloth that she kept in one of her hidden pockets for whenever she did housework Sango neatly tied it over her hair like a bandana. Satisfied that she was ready to get to work, Sango walked into one of the nearby guest rooms and grabbed all of the pillows she could find. Setting them down and making a cushiony chair Sango then sat Kohaku, who due to his demonic heritage could already hold his own head up and was nearly able to crawl, onto the soft pillows and removed her sling.

"Now watch mommy little one. I'm going to show you how to clean the house," Sango said as she peered into his big golden eyes.

Kohaku merely giggled at his mother's happy voice and waved his little arms around in excitement. Sango smiled sweetly before standing and turning to the house that she was intent on attacking.

"Ok then. Let's get to work."

The happy pup watched with wide eyes as his mother flew around the house performing various cleaning duties in an incredibly short period of time. His mother seemed very happy while performing the menial duties of housework and his infant mind stored away her smiling face in one of his already developing memory banks. It wasn't long, however, before his tiny body grew tired and he drifted off to sleep while his mother was washing the dishes.

Sango returned to find that her son had fallen asleep in his bed made of pillows and smiled softly at the adorable sight. His short silver hair was a few inches long now and was tasseled from rolling in his sleep. His tiny, clawed fist was stuck halfway in his mouth and his growing body was curled up in a ball.

'_My baby,' _Sango thought as she retrieved a blanket and covered him with it, _'He will grow to be an amazing warrior, just like his father.'_

Thinking of Kohaku's father led Sango to wonder just where her mate currently was. It had only been three days but she missed him terribly.

'_I feel like a part of myself is missing when he's gone,'_ Sango thought sadly but quickly shook it off before her babe sensed her sadness and woke up.

It was then that she sensed a frighteningly familiar demonic aura approaching the house. She narrowed her eyes and scanned her memories for whom it could belong to. Realization his her with horrifying clarity causing her to quickly scoop Kohaku up from his sleeping position and make a mad dash towards her room to grab her weapons.

'_Takusi! Shit! Sesshomaru is who knows how far away and Rin and Shippo are out helping the village!'_ Sango thought as she threw herself into her room and, lying Kohaku down, quickly stripped and changed into her slayer's suit.

While changing she desperately tried to contact Sesshomaru through their mating mark.

'Please Sesshomaru! Please come back! Takusi is here and Rin and Shippo are gone! I can't fight with Kohaku in my arms and I don't know what to do!'

Her mind awaited his answer while her body never stopped its frantic motion. The fox demon bastard was getting closer and closer to the house with each passing second and with Hiraikotsu strapped to her back she grabbed Kohaku from his sitting position on the floor and was about to turn to leave the room when the door flew open. Fear shot through her as she turned and drew her sword with Kohaku in her left arm, just as she had the night he was born.

"Mother! There's a demon approaching the house we have to go now!" Rin yelled from her position in the doorway.

"Oh Rin. I was so afraid that Takusi had already gotten here," Sango said with a small sigh of relief, "Here Rin. I need you to take Kohaku and go to the farthest room of the house. Put up your strongest barrier and do not take it down until you sense that the demonic aura is completely gone. If I am defeated and the aura does not vanish I want you to hold you barrier up until Sesshomaru arrives."

"But mother! You can't-"

"No buts Rin. I need you to do this for me ok?"

Rin quelled her protests at her mother's desperate tone and nodded. Hugging her mom briefly, Rin quickly ran to the far side of the house as Sango ran towards the front door to meet Takusi head on.

'Sango! I'm on my way back. I'll be there in less than an hour I just need you to hang on until then!'

Sesshomaru's thoughts through their mating mark relieved her slightly as she knew that she'd gotten through to him despite the distance and without having to use a slayer's spell.

'_**Rin has taken Kohaku and has erected a barrier to protect them. I'll do my best to hold him off until you get here but please hurry my love.'**_ Sango thought back while the line to Sesshomaru's mind was still open.

'I'm coming as fast as my body will allow. I will save you Sango! I won't allow him to hurt you and get away again!'

"Hahahahaha! So you are going to try to face me alone you pathetic wench?!" Takusi cackled as he entered the clearing in front of the house, "I beat you so easily last time what makes you think that you even stand a chance against me now that I have taken your memories?"

"Takusi! You arrogant bastard! You think that just because you defeated me while I was weak and exhausted from giving birth that you can do so again? I don't think so!" Sango yelled, as she wasted no time in hurling her Hiraikotsu at the arrogant fox demon.

Said fox demon drew his sword and tried to easily block the Hiraikotsu but was surprised at the power of the weapon and was forced backwards and into a tree. He growled lowly as he watched the giant boomerang return to the woman across the clearing who caught it with ease.

"Lucky shot bitch," Takusi hissed as he used his demonic speed to disappear and then reappear in front of the woman who'd dealt him a hard blow to his pride.

Slashing his rapier shaped sword repeatedly at the slayer he was angered to see that she was easily blocking his blows with her giant weapon and it wasn't fazing her at all. Pissed that a lowly human woman could block his strikes so easily, Takusi leapt back as Sango swung her Hiraikotsu at him in a horizontal strike.

"That all you've got demon?" Sango shot with a smirk.

"You have no idea who you're dealing with!" Takusi growled but then calmed himself and smirked evilly, "So you think that you have control of your memories just because you've been able to regain some of them? Hahaha! Wrong! As long as I control my poison I can control your memories!"

A look of horror appeared on Sango's face as the fox demon raised his left hand and released some of his poison causing his hand to glow a sickly yellow color.

"It seems that you have yet to regain the memories of your village," Takusi said with a smirk as his eyes seemed distant and he appeared to be looking into her mind itself, "Well why don't I just let you in on that little secret?"

Sango tried to run forward and swing her Hiraikotsu at Takusi before he could do something to her mind, but she was to late as he easily flicked his wrist and she fell to the ground clutching her head in pain as the memories of her village's destruction flashed through her mind.

"NO! No! Please!" Sango cried as her eyes filled with tears as she watched her family slain for the second time.

Takusi merely laughed evilly and approached her fallen form with his sword raised above his head.

"Now you die!" Takusi yelled as he brought his sword down in a deadly arc.

A loud clang rang through the clearing as steel met steel and two demonic auras clashed. Takusi looked up and growled at the other fox demon that he'd just clashed swords with.

"Just what do you think you're doing?" Takusi hissed as the other fox's emerald green eyes glared threateningly at him.

"I'm protecting my mother in law from a pathetic fox demon who is to weak to fight like a man and has to resort to mental attacks to defeat a human woman!" Shippo growled as he threw Takusi away from Sango's still hunched form with his sword.

Shippo threw a worried look at his second mother who was still crying and clutching her head in pain. Knowing that he could do nothing to help her since returning memories caused her pain, Shippo turned back to Takusi with his demonic aura flaring angrily.

"As much as I'd love to I'm not going to kill you since Sesshomaru deserves to have that pleasure, but that doesn't mean that I can't beat the hell out of you until he gets here," he said as he threw himself towards the other fox demon angrily.

* * *

Behind him Sango was completely consumed by grief as the memories of her clan's slaughter replayed themselves over and over in her mind.

'Father…Kohaku…everyone… They're gone…' she thought as her body shook from the force of her sobs, 'I'm completely alone.'

Her mind began to fall into despair as the large scar on her back began to ache, reminding her that he younger brother was the one who'd caused it. How could she possibly go on with her life now that her whole village was gone? She should just take her own life and end her misery.

'Sango what is happening? I can feel your pain. What's has he done to you?' Sesshomaru's desperate voice rang through her mind through their mating mark.

'Sesshomaru?' Sango questioned as she finally realized that she wasn't alone, 'Oh gods Sesshomaru. My village, Father, Kohaku, they're gone!'

She could hear his feral growl through the recesses of her mind and somehow it seemed to ease her distress slightly.

'I know Sango but it will be ok. I shall be there momentarily and that bastard will pay for what he has done to you.'

Her mate's voice cut through her anguish and the pain in her head seemed to dissipate as his demonic aura approached and grew substantially. She was suddenly able to hear the clash of steel on steel and her vision cleared to see Shippo and Takusi battling. A roar echoed throughout the clearing as Sesshomaru's overpowering demonic aura suddenly hit everyone within the clearing's open area.

"Sesshomaru…" Sango whispered as the sight of her mate's feral expression entered his vision before her eyes blackened around the edges and she lost herself to the vast expanse of unconsciousness.

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**a/n: Tehehehee!!! Finally another cliffie! It's been a long time since I've done one so no one complain. ^.^ But anyways, that's it for this chappie and yall know what to do!**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW!!! ^-^**


	22. The Bloodbath

**a/n: Hey yall! I got up 2 chappies in one day! Yay for me!!! ^-^ I've actually spent like literally all day on these two chappies so be happy people! . ...like I'm mad, ya right... Neways, no more retarded talking... ON TO THE CHAPPIE!!!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Inuyasha...........(*note boring disclaimer*).... -.- ... It's boring isn't it?!**

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Chapter 22- The Bloodbath

Sesshomaru appeared by his mate's side in an instant. Her body had collapsed to the ground only seconds after she had entered his sight as she fell into unconsciousness. Checking her body to be sure that she was not injured anywhere else, he was satisfied to see that Takusi had not landed a single hit on her before Shippo had arrived upon the scene.

Scooping her into his arms he disappeared from his previous spot to appear inside the house in front of the barrier that Rin had erected. His daughter, upon sensing his aura outside her barrier, dropped it and allowed him to enter the room. Sesshomaru quickly entered and lay Sango's unconscious form down on the futon before instructing Rin to raise the barrier back up behind him and leaving the room with a flash. Rin did as her father said and raised the barrier before sending her mother a worried look and heading over to examine her.

Reappearing outside Sesshomaru did not pause in his stride; instead he merely flew towards the battle and slashed his poison laced claws at Takusi who was having difficulty blocking Shippo's sword attacks. Smirking as he felt his poison claws tear through the soft flesh of Takusi's shoulder, he made sure that he injected just enough of his sickly green poison to burn and eat away at the surrounding flesh but not enough to kill him; killing him with a single blow would be to merciful and painless, Sesshomaru wanted him to suffer the way he'd made Sango suffer.

Takusi screamed in pain as he fell backwards from Sesshomaru's powerful and painful blow. He stumbled but managed to remain on his feet while clutching his shoulder that was bleeding and oozing green poison. Shippo, who had moved away before Sesshomaru's first attack, chose to return to Rin to check on Sango and make sure that she was ok; after all, he was no longer needed here. Leaving the clearing he hoped that Sesshomaru would torture that bastard to within an inch of his life before he took his poison from him.

Sesshomaru, himself, didn't even acknowledge his son-in-law's departure; his blazing eyes were focused slowly on the demon that he'd been aching to dig his claws into since he found his mate near death in his burning mansion. His inner demon was growling and clawing at the edges of it's cage, demanding that he slaughter the demon before him, a demand that he was all to willing to succumb to.

Narrowing his golden eyes he flew forward and attacked Takusi in a flurry of blindingly fast strikes that he was sure to make shallow enough that they would not be fatal but deep enough that his poison was able to seep deeply into the muscles and cause the maximum amount of pain possible. It didn't take long for Takusi's body to be covered completely in bloody, oozing gashes and the fox demon was barely able to stand.

"Ba…stard…" Takusi coughed out as he used his sword to keep him on his feet.

"_You_ are the bastard you pathetic fox demon. You attacked my mate and pup when they had done nothing. And you thought I would let you leave with your life?" Sesshomaru spat as he growled and pulled his poison covered hand up beside his face, "Now you shall die a slow and painful death for your actions."

Disappearing from Takusi's sight, Sesshomaru reappeared right in front of him and, slicing his claws upward, removed his right arm from his body. Takusi screamed in pain and fell backwards as his blood flew and covered the ground around him. Sesshomaru walked forward and crouched down over Takusi's bloodied form.

"Now, I want you to release every single bit of your poison onto the ground and I will end your life without any more pain," Sesshomaru hissed as he dug his claws deeply into the bloody place where his shoulder had been and released his poison slowly into the wound, causing the fox demon the scream in pain.

Panting from the effects of the poison Takusi looked up at the demon lord and smirked despite his current situation.

"Heh… You may have gotten rid of me Sesshomaru but the mark I've left on your mate will last long after I've gone," Takusi hissed causing Sesshomaru to narrow his eyes and tighten his hold, "Ahh… Her memories… Her memories are why you want my poison. You think that you can retrieve her memories without pain if you use my poison but it's too bad that that will never happen."

Sesshomaru glared in suspicion at the half dead fox demon.

"What makes you say that fox? Is it possible that you think that I cannot make you give me your poison?"

"That's not it at all _Lord_ Sesshomaru. I have one last thing up my sleeve. I wonder though, how do you think your pathetic human mate will handle the pain of all of her memories returning at once?" Takusi said lowly as his hand glowed yellow with poison again, "I don't think she'll survive, do you?"

Sesshomaru's eyes widened before narrowing dangerously and he swiftly slammed his claws into the demon's heart.

"Too late…" Takusi whispered as the life left his eyes and he slowly died.

Sesshomaru, however, was not interested in the lifeless body of the fox demon he'd just slain. His mind was flying back towards his mate as he stood and turned to head back towards the room that Sango was currently lying in unconscious.

"AAAAHHHH!!!"

His fear was realized as his mate's scream of pain echoed through the house and into the clearing. He used his speed to reach the room in a matter of seconds and rushed inside as soon as Rin released her barrier. At her side in an instant, Sesshomaru worried watched as she clutched her head tightly and screamed.

"Daddy! Something's happening to mommy and I don't know what to do!" Rin cried as Shippo pulled her to his chest comfortingly.

Ignoring his daughter and son-in-law, Sesshomaru focused solely on his mate who was curled into a fetal position on the futon that he'd lain her on earlier. The only other noise in the room that he registered at all was Kohaku's tiny cry from Rin's arms as he once again felt his mother's pain. Knowing that the babe would be fine, Sesshomaru focused completely on his mate once again.

"Sango! I'm here. Just hang on. You can overcome this," Sesshomaru said into her ear to ensure that she heard him over the sound of her own screams.

Sango made no sign to show that she'd heard him at all, or even that she felt him at her side; she just continued to scream and clutch her head in pain.

'_This is just as it was when her memories burned the first time,' _Sesshomaru thought as he desperately tried to think of something to do, _'There is no poison to counter this time. Her memories are returning and there's nothing I can do to relieve the pain.'_

He fearfully listened to the sound of Sango's heartbeat increasing to a dangerous level; the bastard was right, she wasn't going to be able to survive the pain of all of her memories returning at once. His mind suddenly came across a possible solution and he thought it over for only an instant before trying it. Opening their mental connection through their mating mark Sesshomaru immediately felt some of Sango's pain move to his own mind.

'_**I'm here Sango! Pass some of your pain into my mind through our mating mark so that I can help you!'**_ Sesshomaru called out, hoping to get a response from his still screaming mate.

Through their connection, however, the pain was making its way to him without Sango's will and he readily took it. Also, he was able to see every one of her memories as they returned as if he were viewing them with his own eyes; something they'd never before experience through their mark.

'_**Sess…Sesshomaru…' **_Sango called out from somewhere within the flashes of memories, her voice laced with pain and anguish, _**'I-I can't. It's too much. I don't… don't know what to do. It hurts so badly.'**_

Even as she cried out in pain Sesshomaru could hear her heartbeat returning to a normal level as his mind took over half of her pain. His nerves calmed slightly as he was sure that Sango would now survive the massive memory attack. The pain he felt was bearable knowing that his mate was now in the clear.

'_**I know Sango but you will be ok. Hold on for a little longer and the pain will cease.' **_

He received no response but the screams were now down to painful whimpering and he knew that his prediction was correct. As the flashes of memories slowed and ceased, taking the pain with them, Sesshomaru could feel that Sango was no longer conscious so he released the connection and opened his eyes to find a silently crying Rin being held by Shippo who wore an worried expression.

From Rin's arms Kohaku had stopped crying and reached his arms out towards his father, a sign that he wanted to be held. Sesshomaru stood and took his infant son from his daughter's arms after making sure that his mate was laid back into a comfortable position on the futon.

"Was that a memory attack Sesshomaru?" Shippo asked as his father in law turned to look at him.

"A last ditch effort by the worthless bastard to try to end Sango's life," Sesshomaru said as he growled at the thought of the fox demon that now lay in bloody pieces outside the house.

"You killed him I take it," Shippo stated, knowing full well that he would not have returned without slaughtering the fox demon.

Sesshomaru merely nodded and looked down into the eyes of his pup to see a look of concern in his big, golden eyes.

'_Demon pups develop faster than human babies but is it possible for Kohaku to know what is happening and be concerned for the situation at only a week old?'_ Sesshomaru thought as he looked at his young pup with interest, _'Well he is his father's son as Sango has often pointed out.'_

"Rin, if you would hold Kohaku for me I would like to take Sango back to her room for the night," Sesshomaru said as his daughter quickly whipped her tears and put on a bright smile.

"Ok daddy!"

Handing off his son, Sesshomaru bent and picked up Sango's limp form in his arms. She instinctively curled into his chest and clenched one of her small fists into his kimono top. He smiled slightly as he stood and left the room heading back towards the room that they'd been sharing before he'd left. Rin followed behind him while Shippo made his way outside, undoubtedly to clean up the bloody mess that he'd left in the clearing.

Upon arriving Rin slid the door open and allowed her father to enter in front of her. She held her little brother while her father carefully removed her mother's pink battle armor from her black slayer's suit with such precision that suggested he'd done so before. When he was sure that she would be comfortable he turned, took Kohaku from Rin, and settled down on the ground sitting cross-legged beside his mate.

"I can take care of little Kohaku tonight if you are tired daddy," Rin offered before receiving a shake of the head from her father, "Ok. Night daddy. I hope that momm-… mother gets better soon."

He fleetingly hoped that Rin would not go outside to see the bloody mess he'd made of the fox demon but stopped by reminding himself that she was an adult now and he could not protect her from everything; as a priestess and healer he was sure she'd seen her fair share of gruesome sights.

Turning back to Sango's unconscious form he sat for quite some time just watching her and his pup slumber. Sighing in relief he released the tension in his shoulders that he'd been holding since Sango had first frantically contacted him through their mating mark earlier in the day. He had been nearly to the mountains of the north tracking the fox's scent when Sango had called to him and the speed that he'd attained had shocked even him.

'_This is the second time that I've reached those speeds,' _Sesshomaru thought as he remembered his mad flight to the mansion just a week earlier.

"It seems that I can exceed my own limits when it comes to you, my love," Sesshomaru said out loud to the sleeping woman.

Smiling despite himself he shifted to lie down beside his mate and carefully pulled her closer to him. In her sleep Sango moved and threw her arm around his muscled chest. Sesshomaru smiled slightly and wrapped his left arm around her hip protectively. He breathed in her scent and was able to calm himself enough to relax for the rest of the night.

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**a/n: Well there yall go. Sango's finally got all of her memories back! Yay! ...Newayz, I'd like to take this time to thank all of my awesome reviewers who've been with me since the beginning.**

**A super big thanks to: **Hattaru, Lerryn, emodinosaurX3, TheInuyashaKaidanWriter, OneInuLuver, LillithAltair, Animelover6000, Nightfall2525, Tigresa89, sangoscourage, NinjaSheik, SesshomaruLover4evr, igirlwholikesherstuff, and horseluver15 (**All of whom are writers who have their own stories that yall should go check out!^-^**)

**All these people have reviewed at least three times to "A Demon's Heart" and I just wanted to recognise all their decitated reviews. I did not, however, mention anyone who has flamed my chappies since meany face's don't deserve such recognition .!!!**

**PLZ READ AND REVIEW!!!**


	23. The Beloved End

**a/n: Hey yall! Sorry it's been such a super long time since I've updated but I've been pretty busy moving since the last time I updated. Not to mention college prep and applying for colleges and now the 4th of July. That's no excuse for not updating in forever but I honestly have barely had a chance to get on for more than fifteen minutes for the last few weeks as we've been moving and everytime I sat down at the computer I got yelled at. -.-... Anways, I wrote a super long chappy for yall and I hope that you enjoy!!! ON TO THE LONG AWAITED CHAPPY!!! ^-^**

**DISCLAIMER: I SURE AS SHOOTING DON'T OWN INU BUT I DADGUM WISH I DID! GET 'ER DONE!!! ^-^(Just decided to stick that in there ^.^)**

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Chapter 23- The Beloved End

Sango awoke to the first rays of morning light peeking through the eastward window and reaching her tired eyes. Moaning, she brought one hand to her head and held in lightly in pain.

'_Stupid throbbing headache,'_ Sango thought as she clenched her eyes shut in an effort to block out the sun.

Something shifted beside her and her eyes immediately shot open as the realization that her mate had returned hit her. After a moment of adjusting to the sunlight her big brown eyes landed softly on the form of her mate whose beautiful golden eyes were staring back at her and emanating such powerful emotions that she felt she could melt at any second.

"Oh Sesshomaru! I've missed you so much!" Sango sighed as she wrapped her arms around his broad chest and kissed him gently.

"As I, you Sango. You worried me greatly while I was away," Sesshomaru said as he sat them both up, "I was afraid I was going to loose you again yesterday."

The golden eyes that had once been so cold and emotionless now held a colorful array of emotions ranging from worry to guilt, concern to anger, and she could never cease to be amazed that it was her that had brought such a change in him. Their intense emotional moment was broken by little Kohaku crying softly from the pillow on Sesshomaru's other side. Sango merely smiled and held her arms out for Sesshomaru to hand him to her.

"He's just hungry. I haven't fed him since before lunch yesterday," Sango said as she moved her kimono top aside and Kohaku immediately began to eat his fill.

Sesshomaru watched his pup latch on so naturally that he was once again amazed by the miracle that he and Sango had created. His mind wandered slightly as he watched and soon his thoughts led him to the dilemma of where they were going to stay since their mansion was burned to the ground.

'_We could stay with Rin and Shippo until the new house is completed but I would have to be there to oversee the construction and I doubt that Sango would allow me to leave her behind a second time,' _Sesshomaru thought with a sigh, _'Since the new house will be built closer to Inuyasha's village perhaps she would stay there until it is finished and I can return to her at night. Yes, that should work._'

Returning from his rather long train of thought, his eyes refocused on his mate's form to see that Kohaku had finished eating and had fallen asleep in Sango's arms; the woman herself was merely sitting there looking at him.

"You seemed very deep in thought Sesshomaru," Sango said with a smile, "What were you thinking so extensively about?"

He calmly told her about his plans for rebuilding their house and that she could stay with Inuyasha and Kagome while he was away during the day. After finishing his rather long statement he cautiously scrutinized his mate's expression for a sign as to what she was thinking. As usual, however, he was unable to accurately pinpoint what she was thinking and he was surprised when she narrowed her eyes dangerously and her aura flared.

"So you want to leave me behind AGAIN!? This time with absolutely NO chance of danger!" She hissed in a voice just above her normal tone; she may be angry but that didn't mean she wanted to wake the baby.

"No Sango! That isn't it at all. I merely want you and Kohaku to be in a secure environment until a new house can be constructed and we can move in," Sesshomaru said as he quickly tried to soothe his mate's flaring aura.

"Oh…Ok."

If he'd been anyone but the great lord of the west his jaw would surely have hit the floor at the drastic swing in his mate's mood. She had, not two seconds ago, been omitting a killing aura that would have sent even the fiercest warrior running and now she was contently humming as she stood and made her way to change into her traveling kimono.

'_Dear kami… It seems the post pregnancy hormones have finally begun to kick in,'_ Sesshomaru thought in horror.

Sango, who was completely oblivious to her mate's weary stare, hummed a quite tune as she shed her slayer's suit and grabbed her kimono from the place she'd thrown it the day before. It was slightly wrinkled but since they'd be traveling it wasn't something she worried about as she slipped it on and tied the obi in place. Turning back towards her mate she noticed that he hadn't moved from his place on the floor and was currently staring at her strangely.

"What? I know it's a little wrinkled but since I'm going to get it dirty traveling there's no point in washing it right?"

Sesshomaru merely sighed in exasperation and stood with Kohaku in his arms. He shook his head at his mate and headed out the door of their room to tell Rin and Shippo that they would be leaving today. As soon as he was sure he was out of earshot he lifted little Kohaku and looked him right in his big, golden eyes.

"Your mother is a scary woman Kohaku. You can never be too careful around her," Sesshomaru said with a slight smirk as he thought of all the times his mate had threatened him with bodily harm; of course he wasn't afraid of her, he was the great Lord of the West after all, but he knew well enough to be wary of her temper and wanted to let his son in on the fact.

Kohaku merely giggled happily at his father and reached his tiny arms out towards Sesshomaru's smiling face. Sesshomaru allowed him to run his little, chubby hand across the purple stripes on his cheeks as he made his way toward Rin and Shippo's room. His pup seemed to marvel at the stripes that he was unaware were mirrored on his own cheeks.

Nearing his daughter's room he allowed the smile to fall off his face and donned his subdued mask; a habit that he was slowly trying to rid himself of and one that only Sango was able to truly quell. Acknowledging that he had donned his mask he allowed it to slip off just as easily and smiled slightly as Kohaku grabbed a hold of a strand of his long silver hair. Knocking politely he waited for Rin to answer.

"Oh Daddy! Is there something you need? I was going to prepare breakfast shortly," Rin said happy that her father had sought her out for something.

"No Rin. I simply wanted to tell you that Sango and I shall be returning to Inuyasha's village and beginning construction on our new home after breakfast today," Sesshomaru said, watching her face fall slightly but not missing the acceptance in her eyes.

"Ok Daddy. I knew you'd be leaving soon anyway. Are you sure we can't get you to stay just a few more days?"

"You know that the sooner we leave the sooner construction can begin and Sango and Kohaku need a stable home right now. You can come visit anytime you like Rin but we must leave today."

Rin merely nodded, slightly sad, and watched as her father turned to head back towards his and Sango's room. Little Kohaku peered over his father's shoulder and waved one of his little hands at her before Sesshomaru turned a corner and they were both out of sight. Rin stood in complete shock that her week old little brother was already waving at her; what else could the little tike do already?

Shippo came up behind her and wrapped his arms softly around her waste.

"Come on Rin. We may as well get breakfast started."

Smiling at her mate she nodded and happily made her way towards the kitchen dragging Shippo behind her with a secure hold on his hand.

"Ok! But you're going to help me today Shippo! You get breakfast made while I get some supplies together for Mamma and Daddy!"

Shippo do nothing but try to keep on his feet as his wife dragged him unceremoniously through their house and towards the kitchen. Just like her mother, when she was like this it was best to just agree and do what she says.

'_At least she's not as violent as Sango,'_ Shippo thought fleetingly as his mate cheerily drug him behind her.

------------------------------------_**After Breakfast**_----------------------------------------------

Sesshomaru and Sango stood in the clearing in front of Rin and Shippo's house. Kohaku was back in his mother's traveling sling and was happily playing with Hiraikotsu's strap that ran across his mother's chest beneath his sling. The bento boxes that Rin had packed for them were in a cloth bag slung across Sesshomaru's back and he looked slightly strange carrying anything other than his swords and the clothes on his back.

Rin had somehow been able to repress her tears and was happily saying goodbye to her parents. Shippo, who had cleaned the clearing of the bloody massacre Sesshomaru had caused the day before, was also saying his goodbyes to his second mother and father-in-law.

"You'll have to send word as soon as you get the new house built and we'll come stay for a little while," Rin said happily as she hugged her mother for the fifteenth time since she awoke this morning.

"Of course Rin. I'd love for you to help baby-sit Kohaku some time so that Sesshomaru and I can have some time to ourselves," Sango said as she caught the sadness hidden in her daughter's brown eyes.

"Yes! I'd love to! I can't wait until the new house is built!" Rin yelled excitedly as any trace of her former sadness left her eyes.

After a few more goodbyes and hugs, the three were finally off. Sesshomaru once again offered to carry Sango bridal style so that they could arrive faster but she refused saying that she needed to travel so that she could work off the fat she'd acquired during pregnancy. Sesshomaru shook his head and eyed his mate's form; she looked just as lithe and thin as she had before she got pregnant and he was sure that she hadn't gained an ounce of extra weight during or after pregnancy.

They'd been traveling a while and were nearing the edge of the forest when both of them stopped and sent each other wary looks. Both had noticed the demonic auras that had been following them since they'd left the children's house and had been wondering when the demons were going to confront them. Sango had removed Kohaku's sling and released Hiraikotsu from its position on her back. She held the giant boomerang with one hand while shifting her baby in the other. Sesshomaru was none too pleased that his family was once again being targeted by a group of demons; this group was far smaller than the bear demons that they'd battled before but would still prove to be a nuisance.

The two sprang apart as a large shadowy figure leapt from the top of the trees and crashed into the ground between them. Sesshomaru quickly returned to his mate's side as the rest of the demons showed themselves by emerging from the thick undergrowth of the forest. He was incredibly annoyed to see that the demons that attacked them were five large bear demons that had apparently fled from the last attack and were now back for revenge.

He looked to Sango expecting to see a worried look on her face but was met with an amused smirk. His brows came together in slight confusion as his mate handed Kohaku to him and strode forward.

"It's about time you five cowards showed up! I've been waiting for a good workout since I woke up this morning and my muscles were sore," Sango yelled bravely at the five bear demons that stood at least two feet taller than her, "Now Sesshomaru I don't want you to interfere with this little skirmish ok? I haven't been able to let loose in a while and I don't want you ruining it for me by killing them off in one hit."

He very nearly sweat-dropped at his mate's statement. He knew that she was slightly angry about having to be saved from a bear demon the last time but he didn't think she'd have sensed their demonic aura and insisted on walking just so that she could confront them. Of course he knew that now was one of those times that he should simply agree with her and get out of her way; that is, as long as she didn't get hurt.

"Of course Sango. Just try not to take too long."

He didn't miss the smirk on her face as she turned to face the demons. Her traveling kimono was off in an instant and she was running forward with Hiraikotsu swinging dangerously. Sesshomaru watched as she let it fly and it sliced through the throat of the demon that had first tried to attack. His gaze did not leave her for an instant as her graceful movements mesmerized him.

Sango, herself, was having a great deal of fun beating up the pathetic bear demons. She only slew the first one that had tried to hurt her little Kohaku, the rest were merely punching and kicking bags. Her Hiraikotsu stayed in her hands to block the strikes of their blunt claws, those that she didn't choose to avoid, but was not swung to kill the ignorant demons.

Instead of all four attacking at once they seemed to each take turns running at her and resulting in being kicked or punched back violently. After about five minutes of stupidly taking turns one of them seemed to figure out the problem and roared for the other three to attack from all sides. Sango was not overly worried but she did shift her Hiraikotsu into a more defensive position and decided that it was time to stop playing around.

As the bear demons came at her, each from a different side, she swung her Hiraikotsu over her head in a deadly circle that sliced through whatever limb that was struck forward to try to hit her. She was not ready for the leader's foot to come from underneath her swinging weapon and connect squarely with her stomach. Flying backwards she slammed into the bear demon behind her and sent it reeling back as well.

Luckily her swinging Hiraikotsu had sliced through the bear's torso and killed it before she'd landed on it coughing up blood. She heard Sesshomaru yell her name from somewhere behind her but ignored it as she grabbed her weapon and threw it at the remaining three demons. One of them was sliced in half by the deadly weapon but the other two had managed to avoid it's deadly arc and were quickly running towards her to try to get to her before her weapon returned.

She cursed inwardly but drew her katana from her side and prepared herself for the harsh blows of the bear's claws against the thin steel of her blade. She had almost forgotten that her mate was there at all until his broad, white clothed back appeared in front of her and he sliced his Tokijin forward and sent a powerful Dragon Strike that obliterated the last two bear demons. He turned and was by her side instantly, checking her over and worriedly eyeing the blood that had trickled from her mouth.

"I'm fine Sesshomaru. I didn't expect that stupid demon to pull such a sneaky trick and I let my guard down. My demon blood's already begun to heal it," Sango said, choosing not to tell him that one of the bear's foot claws had pierced her stomach when he'd kicked her; it would heal and she didn't want him to worry.

Kohaku was staring wide eyed at the blood that was beginning to soak through her slayer's suit around her stomach. Apparently his mommy didn't realize the extent of the injury or that her blood had now completely soaked through the black material of her suit. Surely she didn't think that his daddy would miss that?

Apparently she did as she turned to make her way back to where she'd discarded her kimono. Sesshomaru growled slightly and followed her, very much aware of her injury but also taking note of his brother and brother's mate's scent that was close by. As Sango leaned down to pick up her kimono the bloody injury seemed to get the best of her and she collapsed to her knees clutching her stomach.

"Sango!" three voices yelled at once.

Sesshomaru, who was already by her side, looked up to see Inuyasha and Kagome running towards them from the edge of the forest. They arrived moments later and Kagome immediately began to see to Sango's injury.

"What the hell happened Sesshomaru? Surely five bear demons wasn't something you couldn't handle!" Inuyasha half yelled as he eyed the blood pooling around his sister's body.

"I could have easily had Sango allowed me to," Sesshomaru hissed back, angry that his brother was implying that he let his mate get hurt unnecessarily.

Inuyasha's angry gaze immediately shifted to Sango and he set off his tirade on her instead. Sesshomaru merely sighed and ignored his brother, choosing instead to focus on the strange glow of the priestess' healing magic. He was relieved when the smell of injury disappeared from his mate's scent and she sat up with a glare towards Inuyasha.

"So what if I wanted to kick those bear demon's asses myself Inuyasha? I can do what I want!" Sango yelled as she stood, swaying slightly but placing her hands stubbornly on her hips.

"Whatever Sango! I can't believe Sesshomaru allows you to do some of the things you do. I'd never let Kagome do something stupid like that!" Inuyasha yelled but trailed off as a chilly aura shot up behind him at his last statement.

"What…Was…That…INUYASHA!" Kagome yelled angrily as she enunciated each word slowly; making the pup that she'd taken from Sesshomaru giggle slightly and bare his tiny fangs.

"Uh…Kagome, I…"

"SIT BOY!"

Sango merely watched in satisfaction as she clearly won the argument without even needed to say the last word. Sesshomaru came up behind her and slipped his arms around her and pulled her back against him.

"Inuyasha's right Sango. You _should_ be more careful," he whispered into her ear as he breathed in her scent to try to assure himself that she was no longer injured.

"Hmmm…. I know Sesshomaru I just love to argue with my brother," Sango said quietly with a small smile as leaned into her mate and watched as Inuyasha pulled himself out of the hole his body had made in the ground.

He nuzzled her neck gently and kissed her sweetly as she turned her head towards him. She turned in his arms and they kissed once more before Inuyasha and Kagome's yelling broke through their romantic moment.

"What was that for wench?!"

"You know full well what that was for and how dare you call me wench! You want to sit you again?" she yelled, letting the word slip and sending him into the ground regardless.

"GAH!"

"Come on Sesshomaru. Let's go brake it up before Inuyasha makes a hole so deep that he can't get out of it," Sango said, as she looked up at her mate with a smile, no longer angry with her dog-eared brother.

Sesshomaru merely smiled as she turned and marched towards the quarreling couple without letting go of his hand, pulling him along behind her; the only reason he was able to keep up with her quick pace being that his stride was the length of two of hers.

'_I have the strangest mate out of all of the Lords the West has ever seen. She has thawed this demon's frozen heart and allowed me to feel things I never thought myself capable of. I love my strange human woman and I'll never allow anything or anyone to take her away from me,'_ Sesshomaru thought fiercely.

He stared at the sight of Inuyasha and Kagome's bickering, little Kohaku giggling loudly from his Aunt's arms seeing his Uncle's dirt covered form, and his beautiful mate's long ponytail swinging wildly as she jogged towards the crazy group that he was now proud to call family. His demonic heart had definitely softened due to the light touch of his beloved mate but he was sure now that he was much stronger for it and was no longer ashamed to show the scars that were and could be left on even a demon's heart.

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**a/n: Whew... That was like 8 pages long and my longest chapter so far ^-^! As you can probably tell this is the last chapter that I'm planning on writing unless I write an epilogue which I may at the request of my reviewers ^.^ ...I'll leave it up to yall if I write one more chappy or just leave it at that. But for all intensive purposes this is the end... *Tear* I promised a super special reviewer that I would write a prequel story to this one but it'll be after I finish my other story and may take a while to get up, we'll see. However, there will be a prequel sometime so all you awesome and dedicated reviewers keep an eye out for it! I love you all and appreciate all your loyal reviews! **

**READ AND REVIEW for the last time... *sob, sob sob!* -----Yours truly, Texascowgirl-13 ^-^**


	24. Epilogue

**a/n: Hey yall! Sorry it took me so long but I finally decided to write an epilogue,however short, since so many of my awesome reviewers requested it. ^-^ Anyways, this will for sure be my last chappy on this story and I must say it has been an honor writing and recieving reviews from all of you. I'm gonna miss you all! *Tears!* T.T ...But anyways, ON TO THE FINAL CHAPPY!**

**DISCLAIMER: FOR THE LAST TIME I DON'T OWN INUYASHA!!! -.-'**

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Chapter 24- Epilogue

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~One Year Later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The sun was just beginning to set as the whole Inu family gathered in Sesshomaru and Sango's new house for its' house warming party. The beautiful new mansion like building was located on the south edge of a grassy meadow and provided a perfect spot for the group to sit around a camp fire, eat some freshly cooked venison, and talk about all the events of the last year.

Rin and Shippo had visited only twice in the last year due to problems at their village and this was the first time in months they'd gotten to see Kohaku. The little pup was now one year old and, due to his demonic heritage, was able to walk and run around the clearing in front of the house. His shiny silver hair was cut fairly short but was very thick and usually took Sango at least thirty minutes to brush through it. Currently he was sitting in his mother's lap watching his piece of venison cook on a spit over the fire.

Sango and Rin were chatting animatedly while their husbands talked and kept an eye on the food. They were half way through a debate on whether or not mole demons could see period when Inuyasha and Kagome approached from the north side of the clearing where Kaede's village was located a few miles away. Sango cheerily yelled for Kagome to join them and she obliged, careful not to jostle the sleeping babe in her arms.

Not a month before Kagome had birthed her and Inuyasha's first pup, a baby girl with her father's silver hair and her mother's beautiful blue eyes. Named Mikomi, Japanese for hope, by her father who said he'd never believed he could do anything better with his life than fight; the child represented a hope for the future that he'd previously denied himself. Kagome had of course immediately agreed to the name thinking that it was adorable and suited her perfectly; she, herself, had never even thought of having children until that fateful day nine months ago when she realized she'd missed her period the month before and ran to her time to get a pregnancy test. The two new parents were completely enraptured by the tiny life they'd created and would do anything for their little hope.

Kagome took her seat beside Sango and watched amusedly as Kohaku's bright golden eyes latched onto the babe in her arms. She smiled widely and spoke gently to her little nephew.

"It's ok Kohaku. This is Mikomi, your cousin. You can come see her if you want."

Kohaku merely shook his head and stayed in the safe confines of his mother's crossed legs. He was going through the shy phase and she merely laughed lightly as he hid behind the sleeve of his mother's kimono.

"Kohaku? You silly, what's wrong with you recently? That's your Aunt Kagome, there's no need to be afraid of her," Sango said with a slight laugh, causing her son to look up at her angrily and send her one of his father's famous glares.

That only caused the three women to burst out into spontaneous laughter and the men to look at them as if they were crazy; being across the fire watching the meat prevented them from seeing the very Sesshomaru-like glare that the one year old had sent his mother. His mother, aunt, and older sister's laughter only further annoyed the young dog demon so he crawled from his mother's lap and made his way over to his fathers' where he plopped down with both arms crossed across his tiny chest. The adorable sight only furthered the women's merriment and caused Sesshomaru to smile slightly at his son's antics.

"Kohaku," Sesshomaru said as he looked down at his son amusedly, "It would be wise to stay over here with the men while the women are all together. You are to young to know the implications of such a gathering."

Kohaku peered up at his father with wide, attentive eyes and nodded his head after his father's statement. They were still unsure of how much the babe understood what he was hearing but it was clear that his intellectual ability was far above most children his age. Sesshomaru merely smiled at his son's nod and turned back to move the spit so that the last bit of meat could cook. Of course as men it was their duty to perform any and all outdoor cooking while the women chatted about anything they could think of; indoors was the women's domain but outdoors was a whole nother story. As demons the men could have eaten the meat nearly raw but their human mates neither could nor wanted to eat raw meat and thus the men hunted down, skinned, and cooked the game they were to eat.

It wasn't long before the venison was cooked to the women's liking and the boys took it off the fire and cut off pieces for each of their mates before cutting some for themselves. While eating each couple sat together around the fire and simply enjoyed the company of their family while munching on their meat and some vegetables that Sango had prepared for tonight's dinner. Kohaku had once again resumed his position in his mother's lap and happily chewed on each small, tender piece of meat that his mother handed to him.

Inuyasha opted to hold Mikomi while Kagome ate and then swap positions whenever she finished. Sango smiled at her brother's thoughtfulness as she absentmindedly handed another small piece of meet to her son who'd been tugging on her arm for another. Rin and Shippo sat on the other side of Sesshomaru and had quickly eaten their meal and were now sending each other slightly nervous glances, which Sango and Sesshomaru caught on to immediately.

"So Rin, is there something you need to tell us?" Sango asked softly as she finished off the last of her meal and set her plate aside.

"What? Um… Why would you ask that mom?" Rin replied nervously, sending an apprehensive glance at her father.

"Well maybe because you and Shippo have both become nervous so suddenly and you both keep shooting nervous glances towards your father and I," Sango said with a slight laugh, "Am I wrong in thinking you have something to tell us?"

Rin merely smiled weakly and turned back to Shippo with a resigned sigh. He gave her a look that said, "Go ahead" but decided to allow her to do the talking.

"Well, actually there is something that Shippo and I have been wanting to tell you. We just were waiting until everyone was together so that we could make the announcement all at once," Rin said happily even though she was still slightly nervous, "Mommy. Daddy. I'm pregnant."

The statement left both older couples completely stupefied for a long moment. Rin and Shippo's nervousness grew as neither of her parents said a word and even the two babies seemed unusually quiet and still. After a moment of mounting fear Rin was about to ask them what they thought but her mother beat her to it.

"Oh Rin that is wonderful! I'm so happy that I'm going to have my first grandchild!" Sango yelled as she set Kohaku in Sesshomaru's lap before moving to give her daughter a big hug.

Slightly relieved that her mother approved of the situation Rin turned to her father who was simply staring at Shippo with a slightly annoyed look.

"Could you not have waited a few years before deciding to have a child?" Sesshomaru asked, his gaze never leaving Shippo as if it were entirely his fault that his daughter was now pregnant.

"Well Sesshomaru, Rin and I are not in any danger as you and Sango were when you first married so we have no reason not to have a pup now," Shippo said flatly as he tried to suppress the shudder he felt as Sesshomaru glared at him slightly.

"That is irrelevant. You know very well what I'm talking ab—"

Sesshomaru was cut off by Sango elbowing him hard in the gut from her new position between he and their son-in-law; apparently her sitting Kohaku in his lap and going to hug Rin was not merely for the sole purpose of congratulations, she knew him very well and had anticipated how he would react.

"Sesshomaru is happy for you as well Rin," Sango said as she noticed the few tears that were beginning to well in her daughters eyes, "He's just very overprotective of his only daughter and wants what's best for you."

Sesshomaru did not deny his mate's statement but it was obvious that he was none to happy that his daughter was pregnant when his own pup was merely a year old. However, upon seeing the slight tears brimming his daughter's eyes he decided not to breach the subject any further. He was slightly surprised that the young couple was even aware of Rin's current pregnancy seeing as he, himself, had to carefully scrutinize her scent to even catch the slightest whiff of the pup's scent within her own.

Speaking of which, Sango's scent had changed slightly recently as well. Drawing his brows together in concentration he inhaled her scent deeply and sorted his way through her normal scent until her found what had been changing it. His gaze flicked to her happy form as she once again congratulated Rin and Shippo on their upcoming pregnancy.

_'Hm… I wonder how Sango will take the news that she is pregnant again; this time with twins.'_

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**a/n: Well that's it. Kinda short but I really couldn't think of much to write so I'm sorry if the epilogue isnt what yall expected. Once again I am super glad that you all read and reviewed my story and I'll try to get to work on the prologue story soon. ^-^... But anyways, goodbye yall and you know what to do...**

**READ AND REVIEW (one last time)!!! ...T.T...**


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